Apartment 119
by Vanity-Sky
Summary: It's hard to date when you're a single parent, trust no one, and have some serious baggage but it all started with a cup of sugar. Shallura (with little kids Klance friendship.)
1. The Castle's Empty Nest

AN: Hey… umm… Hi! This is my first fic for the Voltron fandom.

I don't know if anyone will read it or like my random little idea here but I'd appreciate the support. I've rewatched this series, especially season 1, waaaaayyyyy too many times now. Lol, so yeah, I hope that fellow Shallura fans enjoy~

Summary: It's hard to date when you're a single parent, trust no one, and have some serious baggage but it all started with a cup of sugar. Shallura with little kids Klance friendship.

Apartment 119

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The Castle's Empty Nest

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"Today marks the fifth anniversary of the end to the riots of the Isle of Altea. Ambassador Alfor will be commemorated and preserved in memory with the unveiling of a life-sized statue at Garrison Central Park where the Altean embassy once…" the tv's newscaster's voice slowly faded into the distance as the woman lowered the volume and walked down the hall.

Deeply sighing, she closed her eyes for a brief moment before putting a private smile on her lips and turned the knob.

"Rise and shine, Starshine!" she cheerfully exclaimed as she ran towards the small bed with its blue lion colored themed bedsheets. She excitedly swooped up the groggy little body into her embrace and nestled him securely in her arms as she attacked his chubby little cheek with kisses.

"Mooooom, I'm up! I'm up!" the boy protested by trying to block his face from her onslaught of kisses on his cheek.

"I'm going to miss you today, I can't believe it's your first day of school already. How about we skip this year, yeah? I'll enroll you next year! Yes! I like the sound of that very much instead!" the boy's mother squeezed him tightly, crushing him to her chest as he huffed.

"But I'm five now! All my friends will be there!"

The woman smoothed over his dark brown hair and smiled, "fine, fine, but let me have this moment. Mommy isn't used to being home alone in the Castle" she told him as he allowed her to hold him for a few more minutes before he grew excited over getting to choose his own outfit for his first day of school.

Once ready, she held his hand as they made their way out. The school being only a short walk away but to her dismay, that meant having to walk past GCP. It's not like she hated Garrison Central Park, it was a gorgeous and spacious park in the heart of the city with its own koi pond, cherry blossom trees, and a brightly lit-at night gazebo - but today was especially hard for her to pass by it.

"Mommy, do I really need this big puffy jacket? I feel like a marshmallow!" her son complained, waddling in place next to her.

Call her over-protective or paranoid but she didn't want him catching a cold on a slightly breezy and chilly spring day.

"You can take it off after we enter the school and find your classroom" she told him as she adjusted her own baby pink turtleneck higher to cover her mouth.

She was wearing a white lace midi skirt with white stiletto pumps, a mid-sleeve baby pink turtleneck and a simple pink purse while her son was sporting a gigantic blue puffy jacket that ate him with black jeans and sneakers.

As they made their way past the park where a grand ceremony was being held for the fallen Ambassador of a once great nation that was now reduced to nothing but a mere memory. The woman squeezed her son's held hand and quick paced them as far away from the flashing lights and crowd of reporters as fast as her heels could take her.

Her heart throbbed in her throat as she tried calming her breathing through her nose. Thankful that they had finally reached the school, she was kind enough to let her son out of his restraint and unzipped him out of his puffy blue prison.

"I'm free!" he shouted as he stretched his tiny arms as high above his head as he possibly could.

The woman playfully rolled her eyes as she placed the jacket over her bent arm that was holding her purse. Opening the door, she let her son in first.

Getting situated with the place didn't take long as other parents were struggling to find their own way at the school. That made her feel slightly better as she and her own son stood outside his classroom.

Bending down to his level, she fixed his blue plaid collared shirt.

As she did this, the boy noticed girls his age giggling as they entered the room.

"Mommy, you're embarrassing meee" the boy whispered, cupping his small hand against her ear, "the girl's will think I'm still a baby!"

She tore a small piece of black thread off his shirt and shook her head, "don't care, you're still _my_ baby"

He groaned as he watched his mother gesture for him to give her a kiss on the cheek. He did it reluctantly and lazily gave her a hug, whispering that he loves her before he eagerly ran off into the classroom.

Getting up from the floor, she smoothed out her skirt and chuckled, entering the room to hang his jacket on a hook on the wall. She blew a kiss towards him, waving as she left, watching as other dotting parents were still lingering around.

Kindergarten was a huge step.

The next big chapter in their lives.

Heading out of the school, just as fast as the strike of lighting and as loud as thunder, she didn't see it coming when a tall man came bursting through the entrance with a small boy in a red sweater cradled in his arm like a football.

She feared for her life for a split second, getting out of their tornado paved way as her body stayed still on the side of a wall.

"Sorry!" the man yelled back at her.

"Ah, shit, we're late Keith!" the man could still be heard.

"Go! Go! Go!" a small boy chanted, as their voices left in a blur.

The only feature she caught of him was black hair that looked partially shaven? Was that a patch of white on top? She'll never know.

Shrugging the experience away, she made her way back home. Alone and lonely, ready to count the hours until she had her son back where he belonged - safe and sound at home with her.

Treading back the same way she came, she paused once she reached the park and stared at the statue that they had just unveiled to the public.

She lifted her right hand up as if imagining that she could physically touch the statue. She paused as she caught the twinkle of the small diamond of the rose gold band on her ring finger. The sparkling facets reminding her of what Altea once stood for. "Goodbye, father" she whispered to herself, kissing her ring, she painfully willed her feet to move.

When she was ready, she knew that she could always go and visit the statue.

Tossing her keys and purse on a table at the entrance, she placed her hand on the wall for support as she took off her pumps.

Sighing in relief, her bare purple painted pedicured feet touched the softness of the white carpeted floor. She made her way into the kitchen to turn on the coffee pot, needing her caffeine source for the day. She had no time earlier in the morning with getting her son up and ready for his first day of school.

"Ahh… what am I going to do with myself now?" she asked herself as she readied a cup, deciding that after her daily routine cup of coffee, that she'd read a home magazine, then go ahead and clean her son's room and then pick up a few toys he left lying around the living room before leaving early to wait for him to get out of school.

Her plans were interrupted when she heard a sudden knock coming from the entrance. Raising a suspicious eyebrow, she wasn't expecting any deliveries and her landlord had no reason to come to personally see her unless he was baking something. Turning her coffee maker off, she made her way to her door, unlocking the deadbolt and four other locks while keeping the door chain lock on.

"Yes?" she called, eyes widening as she recognized the man.

He was the guy that nearly ran her over in the hallway of the elementary school!

"Hey, Apartment 119, uhh… Neighbor? I know we haven't talked before but I live right across the hall in 120" the man rambled as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck and held a measuring cup with the other. He was wearing a black muscle shirt with ripped navy blue jeans and black combat boots.

She noticed his right arm was a prosthetic that ended a little above the bend of his arm. She knew it was rude to stare but couldn't help it until she focused on his face instead. As she predicted, she got his hair detail right and now could see that he had a small scar across his nose.

"Is it alright if I bug you for a cup of sugar? Cliché, I know and I promise I'm not flirting here but I really do need sugar and I currently don't have enough time to run to the store" he finished explaining through the three inches of space where she could see him.

He looked harmless and if anything funny happened, she had a rhinestone bedazzled pink baseball bat hidden in the apartment at her disposal.

"Sure, one moment please" she politely told him as he patiently watched her close the door and heard the chain's lock come undone as she opened the door again.

"I'm Shiro by the way. It's nice to meet you" he greeted her with a kind toothy smile as he held his hand out for her to shake.

"Allura" she greeted back.

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Done! To be continued.

I'm trying to write this story in the same format as my Yuri! On Ice fic – aka shorter chapters so that I won't take eons to update it. Honestly, I don't know how long this story will be but it will be mildly quick-paced.

I'll upload the second chapter either tomorrow or soon enough.

Ps. Thanks to Anime-Mintgrl for helping me with the title of this fic! And their home/apartment will be referred to as the Castle.

Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]

I don't own Princess Allura or Takashi 'Shiro' Shirogane and all other characters mentioned or those that will be used in this fic – Voltron: Legendary Defender is owned by DreamWorks/Netflix.

I just own the idea/plot/story/whatever you want to call it~ lol :P


	2. Sugar And Spice

AN: Aww thanks so much for showing this story some love! I know the first chap was vague but this is where the plot gets rolling.

If you're new to my writing (and I'm sure all of you will be) well all I can say is... buckle up, strap on, and get ready for this whirlwind of emotions. MWAHAHAHA. It'll be worth it, I promise.

Ps. Before I forget to mention this (again) this is a human au. Alien species are just other ethnicities.

Happy reading~ :D

Sugar And Spice

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"Ah, no shoes please!" Allura told him as she tilted her head towards the hall, "my entire apartment except for the kitchen area is all white carpet, the kitchen has tile. Welcome to the Castle!"

"Oh, yikes. Mine is entirely wood. Uhh… Castle?" he asked her as he took off his boots and left them on a small shoe rack she had at the entrance.

"Hmm… must be nice" she replied, "please excuse the mess, I dropped my son off this morning for his first day at kindergarten and haven't had a chance to clean up. We call our apartment the Castle, my son has a vast imagination and he's obsessed with this hugely popular kid's tv show"

Shiro gave her small apartment a once-over, now noticing the small blue lion toys sprawled all over the floor.

"Is he a fan of Voltron?"

"You know the kids show?"

"Yeah, it's that wildlife show teaching kids about lion habitats and exotic species. Doesn't the zookeeper dress up like a giant robot or something?" Shiro asked chuckling, "whatever to keep the attention of little ones, right?"

Allura smiled, nodding, "my son Lance loves the blue lion puppet of the show"

"And my kid brother Keith loves the red"

She took his measuring cup as they stood in the kitchen, Shiro leaning against the counter as she searched her small pantry for the bag of sugar. "Does your brother live with you?"

Shiro hummed a yes, "yeah, it's just me and him. I work two jobs so I accidentally overslept for his first day of kindergarten. He was already dressed and made himself a bowl of cereal while I was running around trying to get ready" he laughed at the memory, shaking his head, "I'm sorry that we torpedoed our way through the hall"

"So, you knew it was me?" Allura smirked, closing the pantry door with a small kick.

"As soon as you opened the door, I recognized you, but who would've thought we'd be neighbors?"

"Small world, eh?" she giggled and handed him his measuring cup, now filled with white sugar.

For a brief moment their hands touched, his left with her right. He noticed the diamond ring on her finger but said nothing as she showed him the exit.

"Thank you, I appreciate your help. I'm… uhh..., I'm assuming that your husband wouldn't like me repaying the favor any other way so I'll buy you a bag of sugar the next time I go grocery shopping"

Allura blinked a few times registering what he just said. Lightly smacking her hand against her forehead, she genuinely laughed catching him off-guard, "Oh gods! The ring! No, you've got it all wrong"

"I do?" Shiro questioned, unsure.

She nodded, "yes, I'm not married or dating anyone. I'm quite… single. This ring was a gift from my father, before the riots when Altea once flourished, it was known for its diamond. The Altean diamonds sparkle more than ordinary diamonds, many jewelers are mesmerized by its holographic shine. It was a symbol of Altea's peace-loving, diplomatic views. The diamond reflected the Altean people"

"Ahh, that explains a lot. The accent! You're Altean, right?" he innocently asked.

Allura quickly clamped up, thinking she said too much. It was a fault of hers, she loved socializing and in good company, she failed to realize what she'd say. It could've easily given her away. But then she took mental note of her own physical features, she had toffee colored skin, pale silvery hair, and tribal pink tattoos etched on her high cheekbones - these were all common features of the tropical people of the Isle of Altea.

"…Y-Y-Yes" she hesitated.

"Sorry, I should be the one apologizing. That was insensitive of me, I've never met anyone from Altea living here in Garrison City. I know it's hard to talk about, with what happened with the riots and all" he told her, rubbing his right arm prosthetic as he did so, "I was… there during the riots. I'm glad that there were survivors"

"Your arm?" Allura softly asked.

They were standing in the hall, Shiro ready to leave her apartment when this conversation came up. He didn't mind talking about it but he'd wish it'd never come up, "the Altean riots. I was on vacation there with my parents and kid brother, he was only a baby when it happened. I… I… lost my arm trying to save a couple of kids stuck under their houses, everything was flooded and on fire, honestly, I can't remember much. A rioter caught me and hit me with the back of his rifle, next thing I know, I'm screaming in agony from the loss of blood. I just… I just hope that those kids made it out alive"

Shiro winced when Allura gently touched his right arm, "I know we've just met but thank you, Shiro, thank you for trying to save my people"

He firmly nodded, "of course, Allura"

He silently reminded himself to not blurt out how, due to the riots, he lost his parents and was the reason why it was just himself and Keith now. It wasn't an appropriate topic to bring up and he didn't know much about her either. He didn't want to upset her with his own tragic life story.

Allura bit her lip, hating how their pleasantries ended on such a heavy topic.

"I don't normally do this and I'm not sure it's entirely okay to but… would you like to get a cup of coffee with me sometime? If it's alright with your girlfriend, it'd be nice to have a friend here in this city. I haven't lived here long"

Shiro grabbed his boots, sitting on the small step at the entrance and put his shoes back on. Twisting the doorknob, he let out a hearty laugh, "don't worry, no girlfriend. And I'd really like that, we already dove into a heavy topic, I'd hate to leave things on such an awkward note"

"Ditto" she smiled at him.

"Do you mind exchanging phone numbers? I don't know what your schedule is like and mine changes all the time so it'd be nice to plan ahead for this… coffee get together"

Allura reached for her purse that she left at the table at the entrance and dug into it trying to find her pesky little phone that was constantly hiding from her. Finding it, she quickly unlocked it and handed it to him.

Shiro thanked her typing in all his information as she did the same on his phone.

Once that was done, they said their final goodbyes for the day.

"Thanks again for the sugar, you're a life saver" he waved at her as she watched him jog across to his own apartment.

Allura smiled again, slowly closing her apartment's door.

She never expected her day to turn out this way. A small blush crept on her face with a tingly sensation soon following. She patted her cheeks and tried to stop the feeling.

Could she even consider this a date? She's never been on one.

Snapping out of her thoughts, she got to work seeing that she had less time for things now before having to go pick up Lance from school.

"Did you make any friends today, Starshine?" Allura asked her son as he bounced in his steps, holding her hand as they walked home.

"Mm! I did! A boy named Keith but…" Lance recalled, scrunching up his nose, "he dared me to eat glue"

Allura sighed, stopped and turned to bend down in front of him.

"Lance, now what did I tell you about peer pressure?"

"That it's bad and to say 'no' if I don't feel comfortable or know that it's not the right thing to do" he repeated the lecture that she gave him a few days prior to starting public school.

"Exactly"

"But it's okay, Mommy, I also dared him… to eat a worm! And he did!"

"Laaance" Allura groaned.

"My friends were right, raising a boy would be no easy feat" she told herself as she got up from the floor and zipped up her son's blue puffy jacket.

Taking a step forward, she paused again when Lance didn't start walking with her.

"Mommy?" Lance pointed at the now emptied park, "why did they make a statue of Grandpa Alfor?"

Lance never got to know his grandpa but she kept his memory alive for him through family photos she's preserved. Some were ruined in the fires of the riots but she saved what she could. She knew that her father wouldn't have approved of her son's birth but this is her baby and she loved him endlessly. She knew that if her father had gotten to know Lance, then he would've loved him just as much as she does.

"Grandpa Alfor was once famous. He was a good, kind, and gentle man. Other people could see that and wanted to never forget that"

"Ooh, I'm happy then" Lance lit up, "I wanna grow up to be just like him!"

"I'm sure you will, Starshine" she told him, kissing the top of his brown hair and making their way home to their Castle again.

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Done! To be continued.

Heavy topics, cup of borrowed sugar, and a date – Oh my!

The fluff will come… I can assure you, soon enough.

Depending on my mood, I'll update either later tonight or sometime tomorrow!

Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	3. The Balmera's Brew

AN: Yay! Good to see familiar names on the reviews. Thanks so much guys~

I'm trying to write chapters in advance while I have this spark rolling so I don't have much to say on these things. Lol.

Anyways, happy reading~ :D

The Balmera's Brew

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"Bye, Starshine, I love you! Have fun today!" Allura shouted while waving at Lance.

Lance stared at her with a blush coloring his cheeks, his shoulders meekly shrugging in embarrassment as he entered his classroom.

As Allura waved, a small boy about the same height and age as Lance paused and stood right next to her.

"You're pretty but really loud" he honestly told her as he held onto the straps of his small red backpack and walked into the classroom.

Allura was rendered speechless by the five-year-old.

"Allura! Hey!" a voice called out in the distance to her.

Turning around, she spotted Shiro waving at her as he ran in her direction. Panting, he bent over to place his hands over his knees.

"My little brother ditched me this morning, that was Keith, I hope he wasn't rude to you" Shiro huffed, "why does running hurt so much?" he complained, holding onto his sides as Allura shook her head.

It had been two weeks since their first encounter and three days since they texted each other to make plans for later on, on this very day.

"Your son went in already?" he asked, gaining his composure again.

She nodded, "Ah, so that was Keith. A little blunt but don't worry it's fine and yes, I walk Lance to school and make sure he goes into his classroom"

"Wish I could do the same but Keith is an independent little punk with no filter" Shiro shrugged, helpless in his cause. "So, shall we get going?" he asked as he gestured for her to take hold of his forearm.

Allura bit her lip, today Shiro was wearing a short sleeved plain white shirt, black jeans, a silver chain wallet attached to the pocket, and the same black combat boots. She didn't know what she felt about touching his exposed skin but she was _trying._ Asking him out for coffee was already a stretch out of her comfort zone.

Taking his arm, she followed his lead.

Not even two minutes into their walk and he started to laugh.

"What's so funny?" she quietly asked.

"You know we look like a matching couple today"

"I beg your pardon? What?"

"Your outfit" Shiro gestured up and down at her clothes with his free hand.

"Oh… OH!" Allura gasped, it completely went over her head. She was wearing black overalls with a white crop top and black wedge ankle boots.

She definitely didn't do this on purpose.

"I guess it just sort of happened?" she giggled, embarrassed.

"Well, I think," Shiro started, quickly switching to an Altean accent, "that you look quite lovely"

"Oh gods, is that really what you think I sound like?" she bursted out laughing, stopping them in their tracks.

Shiro shook his head, grinning, "of course not, you sound much better than that"

Allura tried mentally willing the tingly sensation to go away once more as they finished their journey to the coffee shop in peaceful silence.

"Welcome to The Balmera's Brew!" the employees greeted at the sound of a customer entering with the bell dinging.

Walking to the counter, Allura smiled and hugged the cashier over the counter, "it's so good to see you, Shay!" Allura greeted the taller woman with dark chestnut hair in an asymmetrical bob cut and big gold triangle earrings.

"I haven't seen you here in over two weeks, I started to worry that you switched over to decaf" Shay joked as she smoothed over her green apron and nametag.

Allura shook her head, "I would never! I need my quintessence brew like I need air!"

Shay laughed at that, agreeing with her.

As the women talked, Shiro was shocked, "wait, Allura, you get the quintessence brew?"

Allura twiddled her fingers together, "did I forget to mention that I'm a caffeine addict? Altean brew is nothing compared to this though, which Altean children learn to drink at a very young age"

"You're saying that in Altea, they had stronger stuff?!" Shiro almost choked on his sentence. The quintessence brew was equivalent to about five shots of pure espresso, he couldn't imagine anything stronger than that.

"I'm guessing you won't be getting the same thing then, Handsome?" Shay winked at him.

Shiro shook his head, "just a regular iced coffee for me, please"

"You got it!" Shay punched in the order and rung them up.

Getting their drinks right away, Allura blew an air kiss Shay's way and then walked out with Shiro who held the door for her.

They decided to sit outside on the second story's balcony terrace of the coffee shop.

The cool breeze swayed Allura's long wavy silvery hair. Shiro paused to admire how the sun hit her just right, causing her to glow.

"She's radiant" he whispered to himself, the wind suddenly getting knocked out of him.

"Shiro?" she called when she saw him stop.

"Coming" he told her, reaching her and sitting down at the table with a green umbrella she chose.

"So…" they began in unison.

Both awkwardly laughing, Shiro took a sip of his iced coffee and hit the reset button on himself.

"The first time we met, I'll admit that I didn't expect you to go through with planning our get together. I really thought that, that heavy topic we brought up would be the end of this friendship before it even started" Shiro sheepishly admitted.

Allura gave him a sincere smile and shook her head, "I never go back on my word, besides aren't all great friendships started on awkward moments? I should apologize too, I didn't mean to get personal back then. You were just asking for a cup of sugar after all… but, I'm glad. Truly, I am. I've only lived in Garrison City for six months now, before that, I lived in Arus Metropolitan, it's where my son was born, but I've…" she paused her thought.

Shiro patiently waited for her to continue, watching several different emotions pass on her face.

"I've never been one to easily trust others. Especially men but call me crazy here, I feel like you're different, Shiro" she truthfully told him.

He took mental note of her not easily trusting men. "Has it always been just you and your son?"

Allura took a sip of her hot coffee, "for as long as Lance has been alive, it has. My father unfortunately passed away during the Altean riots so he never got to meet his grandson"

"That's… hard" Shiro didn't know what else to say to that, "but I understand, the riots changed everything for me too. Not just my arm but also…" should he tell her? Would she pity him? She didn't seem like the type to.

Allura waited for him to continue, telling him with her eyes that it was alright to not tell her if he didn't feel comfortable to.

"My dad and step-mom both died during the riots. Keith is my half sibling, we share the same father but different mothers. He was still a baby when it happened so I'm the only family he's ever known. He's still little so he doesn't fully grasp that I'm not his dad but he calls me Daddy. I don't mind but I worry about when he's older, you know?"

"Of course, but I'm sure he'll appreciate all that you've done for him in the end. I just… I just wish there was more I could say about the riots, anything positive to make it less dire but it was all so horrible and the worst thing of all is that it wasn't even the Alteans - my people's fault!" Allura unconsciously raised her voice, apologizing right away to him.

"Then whose was it?"

Allura gripped her coffee cup and chugged down the last bit of it, "the Municipality of Daibazaal and the Isle of Altea are both fairly close to each other, the only thing dividing the two nations is the Galaxy ocean. For eons, both have been fighting for land and resources but I guess, what Galra had already wasn't enough and they wanted more. Someone from the Galra military murdered an Altean child. That's how the riots started. After that, it was a group of mixed Altean-Galran citizens that were unhappy with the Ambassador and all of the royal family not settling this tragedy in a blood bath so they just destroyed everything. In the end, both nations ceased to exist" Allura explained, being extra careful to not mention how her father was the Ambassador of Altea.

"That's… wow, I-I-I didn't know"

"No one knows this, only the Alteans who were there during the riots, who were close to the governing system. You could say that… I had my ways of knowing information"

"Oh, my new friend is a spy, that's pretty cool" Shiro casually joked, trying to make light of the topic. Another mental note he made in that moment was that Allura probably didn't like the Galra very much, therefore he wouldn't bother mentioning how his step-mom was Galran.

Allura appreciated his humor, "as enticing as that occupation would've been, back then I would definitely get fired on the first day. My heart and conscious would be the end of me"

"Hmm… I think you make a good judgement of character. I mean, you said that you felt pretty good about myself" Shiro smirked, "not to toot my own horn but I am quite the catch"

Allura genuinely laughed at that and playfully smacked his left shoulder.

"What makes you say that, O fairest Romeo?"

"I've never cared for romance, never thought much of it after I basically became a single parent but with you - I felt a connection, my dearest Juliet"

Allura's breath hitched in her throat, "but we've only known each other for two weeks, do you honestly think that's enough time to tell?"

Shiro shrugged, "I've never felt tingly and numb around anyone else. Have you?"

"I-I-I have not" she told him, completely honest, wearing her heart on her sleeve.

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Done! To be continued.

Let the fluff commence after serious talks about the past!

Like I said – this story will be mildly quick paced therefore minor time skips here and there.

Still don't know how long this will be, I'm letting this story and plot write itself as I come up with stuff to get to certain… twists. Mwahahaha. (Which is how all my stories are written tbh. Lmao.)

Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	4. Balloons To My Heart

AN: Wow! Thank you all for the lovely reviews~

Yesterday was our Sharpshooter's birthday! In honor of Lance, I wrote a decently long one-shot titled _Home Is Where The Heart Is_. It includes Klance bromance/Paladin fam/and hinted Shallura – so make sure to go check that out (and please show it some love by leaving a review~)

This chapter contains no heavy talks of the past, just, lots and lots of blushing. Lmao.

Happy reading~

Balloons To My Heart

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 **Allura, how old r u?**

 **19 almost 20. U?**

 **23, I know. Old.**

 **Lol. I don't mind the old cane look.**

 **O, rlly? ;)**

"Mommy, who are you texting?" Lance asked as he shoved a spoonful of macaroni and cheese into his mouth.

"Chew first!" Allura reminded him, setting her phone down at the dinner table.

"Yorublwushing!" Lance said in a garbled mess.

"Am-Am not!" she stuttered, patting her rosy cheeks. Okay, so maybe it wasn't the brightest idea to text someone that potentially might like her back in a romantic type of way in front of her five-year-old son but she was giddy and couldn't stop the stupid tingly feeling from going away. She just couldn't believe that she boldly told him that she didn't mind that he was a few years older and jokingly said he had a cane.

Lance rolled his eyes, he was no stranger to his mom being dramatic or vocal about things. He watched as she groaned at whatever new text message she received as she dropped her head on the table, just barely missing her plate of food.

"Can you pass the chicken nuggets, please?" he asked, unable to reach for the bowl in the center of the table himself.

"Yes, Starshine" she mumbled into the wood of the table as her arm pushed the bowl of chicken nuggets closer to him.

"Thank you!" Lance happily danced in his seat and helped himself to more food.

 **Since u said I'm old and u don't mind…**

… **Hey babe, my doctor says that I'm lacking Vitamin U.**

Across the hall in Apartment 120, Shiro rubbed his temples. He was currently taking a bath with his little brother. He shut his eyes closed for a second, thinking that, that had got to be the lamest pick up line he's ever used. Not that he had much experience flirting but still.

The water swished around him as he impatiently waited for her to reply back.

"Daddy… you're really weird" Keith told him as he played with his red lion toys in the bath.

Shiro grabbed him into a bear hug to nudge his head, giving Keith's wet hair a messed up, droopy spiked look. The bubbles in his black hair slowly sliding down to his chest.

"You're adorable but so, so brutally honest sometimes, Keith" Shiro told him as Keith dunked his head down into the water to get rid of the soap on his hair.

"I know" he told Shiro, going back to playing with his toys in the bath.

 **U know that was rlly lame. Lmao.**

 **I'm cringing and judgin u hard, Shiro.**

In the morning, both single parents dropped off their kids at school but didn't run into each other like most days.

Allura received a text from Shiro asking her to meet him at the pier. She was thankful that he hasn't suggested the park for their date.

Yes, an official date! She was still reeling over the fact.

They had been talking for little over a month, going on almost two at that point.

Today, she decided to keep her outfit simple. Wearing gray jogger capris, a blue jersey crop top with the number '19' printed in gray, and blue high top sneakers.

She hoped that her comfy and sporty look would look decent for their date, not wanting to go over the top.

The pier was a staple of Garrison City, probably one of the reasons why she looked so forward to moving here when she was city searching for an appropriate place to raise her son in. The carnival style games and food stands were around all year long with a mini roller coaster track, bumper cars, a ferris wheel, and a flying carousel ride.

This time her heart did skip a beat when she spotted Shiro leaning against a railing to a ride. A white plastic stick was sticking out of his mouth from a lollipop. Today he was an all-black ensemble, a color she grew accustomed to seeing him in - the same black combat boots, ripped black jeans, a plain black short sleeved t-shirt, and a motorcycle jacket.

His hands were deep into the pockets of his jacket as he patiently waited for her.

She watched him as he watched others pass by with their laughter and good vibes echoing in the air.

"It's just an outing, Allura, not a marriage commitment" she chanted to herself as she slowly made her way in his direction.

Once she was in clear shot of him, Shiro immediately brightened up and popped the lollipop from his lips to properly greet her.

Allura waved back at him and reached him, standing a few inches across from him. Her breath hitched in her throat when she noticed that the red candy had stained the inside of his lips.

They looked so pouty and kissable…

Shaking her head, she smiled at him, "I've lived in this city for almost a full year now and not once have I've managed to come to the pier"

"Really?" he replied, incredulously.

She giggled with a small shrug of her shoulders, "I'm an extremely over-protective mother. Lance is still much too small for any of the rides here"

Shiro agreed, "are you okay with rides or would you like to just play the games?" he let her decide on what they'd do for their first date at the pier.

Allura felt touched that he took her feelings into consideration and leaned in closer to him, she lightly jabbed his chest with her pointer finger and smirked, "oh, I _love_ rides. I just hope that _you'll_ be able to keep up with _me_ , _old_ man" she teased him, recalling their text messages, as she turned around and started walking away, swaying her hips as she did so.

Shiro's jaw nearly dropped.

As Allura walked to the entrance of the roller coaster, her mind was screaming at her. She couldn't believe what she just did! She's never seduced a man before nor ever really been attracted to someone else before. Her feelings and her approach to this relationship were all entirely so new and foreign to her.

Shiro was impressed, they had managed to ride a few of the rides twice. They called it a day when his prosthetic arm started to ache so they opted for a relaxing view of the city via ferris wheel. As they sat next to each other, he started to roll his shoulder blade in a circular motion a few times, his noise crinkled in minor discomfort.

"It's almost time to pick up the kids and your arm is hurting. Would you like to head back now?" Allura asked him, the small but very evident disappointment was clear in his eyes before he sighed and agreed again.

"My arm will be fine but I wouldn't want your son to worry if you're not there early" he told her as she thanked him. She would make it up to him some way, she just had to.

As they exited the pier area, Allura was about to bring up a conversation starter when she briefly lost sight of Shiro.

Looking left and right, she couldn't see him within the crowds of people on the wooden boardwalk. For a weekday, it was ridiculously overcrowded.

Feeling a light tap on her shoulder, she slightly jolted and turned around.

"Since this _old_ man ruined the flow of our non-stop ride going fun, will cotton candy and a bouquet of five balloons make it up to you?" Shiro asked, holding his arms straight out with the gifts for her to take.

Allura placed a hand over her mouth as she gasped, "but why five?"

"For all the times you've taken my breath away today" he softly told her, his taller figure shielding her from the sun.

"B-b-b-but we still don't k-know m-much about e-each other" she stuttered, unconsciously taking a step back away from his close proximity.

Shiro knew she was scared, having remembered how she told him that she didn't easily trust men. "And I'm really enjoying getting to know you, Allura. I don't expect us to suddenly ride off into the sunset…" Shiro slightly turned his head to the right to look at something else, anything to make what he was about to confess less embarrassing for himself, "I think your beautiful, gorgeous even, both inside and out" his ears and face burned from the scarlet rouge that was his blush.

Allura was rendered speechless, she didn't know how to respond to that. She wasn't sure about many things but in that moment, she took a step forward and grabbed the cotton candy and bundle of balloons from his hands, carrying them in one hand and with her free hand she took ahold of his.

She quietly walked them off the pier towards the entrance.

"Thank you" she told him while facing forward, focused on trying to get away from the crowds of people entering the pier area. She'd die if he saw how red her face was.

Shiro smiled, squeezing her hand.

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Done! To be continued.

I didn't want to write this in the story but I'm making Allura 5'7" and Shiro 6'0" for height reference.

Allura is still shying away from Shiro's cheesy advances but fear not… more fluff is coming soon.

Next up: a chapter dedicated to the little ones! Lance and Keith get a play date… but where, I wonder?

Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	5. Getting Ready

AN: Shout out to Resa for being kind enough to leave a review on every chapter so far! Reviews are truly the greatest motivator an author can have, so thank you! Reviews are always welcomed and greatly appreciated.

Okay so I lied… I said there would be a Keith and Lance dedicated play date in this chapter but as I was typing… I realized that it was getting way too, ridiculously long for a single chapter, so, I'm breaking it down to two parts.

A Keith and Lance play date is coming… just be patient and enjoy the Shallura fluff and feels. That's not so bad of a trade-off now, is it? ;D

Nothing super exciting in this chap – just everyday living, getting ready for an upcoming birthday party (next chap!)

Happy reading~ :)

Getting Ready

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Allura laid straight in bed while her hand patted around her nightstand for her phone. Once she read the new text message on the front screen, she tossed her phone aside and groaned.

Ever since they started to casually text each other, Shiro had been the sweetest guy - he'd text her a good morning, a good evening, and a good night.

She felt so stiff. She didn't feel suffocated but didn't know exactly how to reciprocate his feelings. She was still terrified of opening her heart to anyone, especially when it's always, only been her and Lance.

Allura's heart raced any time she thought too much about a future with Shiro. She was grateful to all the deities in the world that he didn't have a problem with her having a son but… she just didn't know for now.

"Ugh, why am I so emotionally crippled?" she asked herself, turning her neck to view the morning rays seeping in from her purple curtains of the window.

A few minutes later, she heard her bedroom's door slowly creak open as she heard the pitter-patter of tiny feet entering her room.

"Mommy, it's time to get up now. It's morning!" Lance told her, jumping on the bed with her with a loud 'oof.'

Allura caught him in her arms as he laid his head on her chest and hugged her. She brushed his bangs away, her fingers lovingly running through his hair as he closed his eyes and told her how he could hear her heart beat.

For as long as she could remember - it's always just been the two of them.

Lance had always been her bright, bouncing, happy baby boy. He never once questioned where his dad might be or if he even had one or if he'd ever have one. Sometimes she wished she had an answer ready for whenever he'd get curious and ask, she anticipated it more and more as he got older but it never once came. Other times, she was grateful that he wasn't bothered, seeing his other friends have complete families while it was just him and his mom.

"Lance, do you like your friend Keith?" Allura looked at him while holding her phone that she had thrown earlier next to her on the bed. She tapped her nails on the phone while she heard her son humming, thinking of his answer.

Lance lifted his head from her chest and looked up at her with twinkling deep blue eyes, "he can be really sassy but he's not bad!" he cheerfully told her with a toothy, gapped smile. He was starting to lose baby teeth at an early age, it was adorable but broke her heart as a mother. It was a sign of him growing up.

Allura smiled and surprised him by suddenly sitting up and in a swooping motion, she had him in her arms and carried like a baby.

"Mooooom" he started to complain fidgeting around in her embrace.

"I know, I know, you're not a baby anymore but you're still _my_ baby" she told him while leaning down and rubbing her nose against his cheek, "now go to your room and pick out something you'd like to wear. We're going to a birthday party today"

At the mention of a party, Lance immediately wiggled his way out and off the bed to run eagerly to his room.

Allura watched him go, happy to know that he at least got along with Shiro's little brother.

She had yet to properly meet the young boy.

Across the hall in Apartment 120, Shiro rolled the top of his towel and tucked it in on itself, making sure it was secure on his waist before exiting the bathroom.

Walking to his room, he stopped to go get Keith out of bed when he found his little brother already ready for the day and dressed for the birthday party they were going to. He was sitting on his bed with his legs in a criss-cross position, flipping through a picture book that he still couldn't fully read by himself but memorized the story from the countless of times that Shiro had read it to him at bedtime.

"Hey, what are you doing up so early?" he asked Keith while drying his hair with the towel draped over his broad shoulders.

Keith took his eyes off the book and looked up at him, "daddy, you promised me cake. I'm waiting to go to the party" he simply told him and returned to reading his book.

Shiro shook his head and sighed, walking to his room to get dressed. "This kid…" Shiro chuckled to himself as he dropped the towel from his waist in front of him and tried to find something with color for once.

He decided to wear navy blue jeans with a belt, a slim fitting light blue, long sleeve collared shirt, and brown leather shoes.

His outfit screamed, 'hey, I'm a single parent.'

Adjusting the length of his gold banded smart watch, he took a quick glance at the time and cursed.

"Dammit, we're going to be late!" he said out loud and ran to Keith's room.

Keith was still looking at the pictures of his book when all of a sudden Shiro came in and lifted him off the mattress, causing Keith to drop his book on the bed, he held him in one arm as Keith wrapped his tiny hands around Shiro's neck as his 'dad' ran around the apartment like a mad man trying to find his house and car keys before slamming the entrance door shut.

"Uhh… daddy?" Keith called him as they were ready to run down three flights of stairs since the elevators were currently out of service.

"What?" Shiro huffed.

"My shoes" Keith said.

Shiro looked down and noticed that Keith only had white socks on. Even if Keith was the most independent five-year-old on this planet, he was still, well, a kid.

"Shiii…crap" Shiro corrected himself, he tried his hardest to not curse like a sailor around his little brother.

Quickly running back to the apartment, he got the shoes and slipped them on Keith.

"Mission accomplished!" Keith cheered, "OH! Wait!" he put his hand up in a 'stop' motion to Shiro, running back into his room and came right back out with a Kaltenecker the cow plushie wearing a red lion voltron dress up outfit.

"Okay, ready!" Keith hugged his cow plushie.

Shiro picked him back up and ran out the apartment with him securely in his arms.

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Done! To be continued.

Anyone else love Kaltenecker? I'm so excited to see more of that useless (aka amazing) cow in season 3/future seasons. Lmao.

Since I split this chapter into two, I'll upload the second part tomorrow. Prepare your cheesy feels.

Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	6. Cake Pops And Voltron

AN: Aww yeah! Thanks for reviewing! Reviews are my fuel. I'm not the type of author to require/demand a certain amount of comments before updating a fic so any love my story gets is good enough for me~

Fun fact: originally, I was thinking of having Kaltenecker be an actual place like say… Hooters. Lmao. And Shiro worked there part time but then I saw fan art of a chibi Lance holding a plushie Kaltenecker and decided to change it.

Happy reading~ :D

Cake Pops And Voltron

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"Ahh! Allura you've finally made it!" Shay greeted as she kissed Allura on the cheek and hugged her. "And rocking that outfit, hot mom alert!" Shay joked as Allura blushed and swatted away at her compliment.

"Oh, stop it now, you" Allura laughed.

Today she was wearing a white ruffled tube top, a peach tulle skirt, gold slingback heels, gold bracelets, small pearl earrings, and holding a gold clutch purse. Her long silvery white hair was styled in a side braid ponytail.

If she was being honest with herself, she did feel radiant today.

She was glad that the birthday party that Shay had invited her to was on the other side of Garrison Central Park, far away from the statue of her father that was still much too hard for her to be anywhere near.

"Where's your son?" Shay asked as Allura took a step to the side to reveal that Lance was holding onto her skirt. In one arm he was hugging his Kaltenecker the cow plushie who was wearing a blue lion voltron dress up outfit.

"He's still very shy… much like his mother" Allura felt guilty, not having exposed him to a huge crowd of children before.

Shay awed, "don't worry, soon you'll be the one worrying that he won't stop socializing but," she giggled, "at least he knows the birthday twins" she tilted her head towards the playground.

Allura immediately spotted Katie, the four-year-old birthday girl wearing a simple green sundress, a black headband and ballet flats. Her twin brother Matt, was wearing a green formal short sleeved shirt with black shorts and shoes.

Allura bent down to Lance's level and whispered something into his ear, gaining a positive reaction from him as he ran off to greet the birthday twins.

"Is Katie still going through the Pidge phase?" Allura asked Shay, remembering that the birthday girl was obsessed with the name of a puppet character named Pidge on the voltron kids show that taught them about wildlife.

"Ooh yeah, Hunk and I get a lot of heat from the other parents in our book club for encouraging it. We've agreed that it's harmless so" Shay shrugged, "now you're telling me that I can't be supportive of my kid's imagination?"

Allura sighed, agreeing with her, knowing her fair share of things others parents might deem wrong that she approved of. There honestly wasn't _only_ one right way of raising your kid as long as love, patience, and understanding were involved. "And Hunk?" she questioned, not seeing him anywhere in the party.

"Oh! He's currently getting changed into the voltron mascot robot outfit. The kids are going to flip!" she excitedly jumped, clapping her hands once.

Allura giggled at that.

Shay was her closest friend that she's ever had, not even when she was growing up on Altea could she recall ever having someone that wouldn't use her for political gain. Shay was different, she was an honest and hardworking Balmeran woman who made a name for herself in Garrison City by opening up a family owned coffee shop she runs with her brother and grandmother.

Her longtime boyfriend Hunk was a well-known food critic, enthusiastic gourmand and restaurateur with two locations – one in Garrison City and another opening soon in Balmera City. Due to Hunk's longtime friendship with his mentor Sam Holt who taught him everything he knew, he considered him more like family – when his close friend and his wife untimely passed away at a young age, he and Shay had gladly taken legal guardianship of the Holt twins who were still babies when the terrible accident had occurred.

"Please help yourself to all the food you want and I highly recommend that you try Hunk's new flavors of cake pops" Shay kindly offered.

Allura thanked her and was about to head over to the food table to get herself and Lance something to eat when she noticed _him._

She squinted her eyes at first to make sure it was really him standing under the shade of a cherry blossom tree, talking and laughing with a group of men. If he was here, then that meant that Keith was too.

Shiro had arrived extremely early at the park no thanks to the constant bombardment of text messages from his best friend Ulaz telling him to hurry up.

He was the only guy amongst his friend group to have a child to look after so as much as his friends wanted him to hurry the hell up, he didn't always but made the effort for once today.

Shiro and his small group of friends were well acquainted with Hunk, the boyfriend of the one throwing this grand birthday party in the park. Back when Shiro had a juvenile record, Hunk was first starting off his business, owning a small food truck he fondly named 'Hunk's Food Goo,' it was the only spot opened late in the dead hours of the night where he and his gang of up-to-no-good friends could go for a bite to eat.

The rest was history after that.

"Sendak's been asking about you, Shiro" Ulaz causally mentioned, taking a sip of his fruit punch.

Shiro deeply sighed, rolling his eyes, "I'm out and you know that. I have a kid to worry about now and trying to maintain a stable job"

Ulaz shrugged, "compared to his previous demands, this one pays well and is legal… enough" he slightly pushed. Unlike Shiro, Ulaz couldn't resist the adrenaline rush of doing one last job after another for Sendak, not fully quitting his bad habits.

"Stop nagging him, Ulaz" Thace punched him in the arm, "not all of us have the liberty to indulge in a certain criminal… lifestyle"

"Thace is right," Kolivan nodded, "even if it sucks"

Antok, the quietest of the group raised his clear plastic cup filled with fruit punch high into the air.

They all, except Shiro who had a cake pop, raised their cups and toasted to that.

"I mean, don't you miss it even a little bit?" Ulaz gestured by pinching his thumb and index finger together.

 _"Ulaz"_ the men warned in unison.

Shiro wanted to say how the temptation sounded good, real good, but that would get Ulaz to start nagging him again so he opted to take a bite out of his red velvet with cheesecake frosting cake pop to shut himself up.

As he chewed on the half piece of spongy cake he had taken a bite off from the stick, he heard his friends wolf-whistle at whoever was making their way to them.

"Hottie coming straight towards us" Antok coughed, speaking up for once, not so discreetly tilting his head in the direction of the woman approaching them.

Shiro nearly choked when he saw that it was Allura.

"Shiro?"

"Allura?"

They both said in the same moment.

"Cupid's arrow caught this sucker" Ulaz snickered.

Kolivan and Thace quickly pushed Shiro towards Allura, both being amused by this new development. Great, longtime friends they may be, but Shiro never spoke too much about his personal life. "Go get her, _Champion_ " they teased.

Shiro grunted at the nickname.

Antok simply waved him off.

"I didn't expect to see you here" Allura told him truthfully.

Shiro held his cake pop in one hand and with the other, he awkwardly scratched the back of his neck, "I'm good friends with Hunk, he invited me"

"Oh! That makes sense" Allura acknowledged, "Shay invited me, she's Hunk's girlfriend"

Shiro smiled, "is your son playing in the playground?"

"He is, I'm sure he's found Keith by now" she nodded, the shyness she felt around him dusting her cheeks in a rosy pink.

They hadn't spoken in person in a few days since their date at the pier. Their entire relationship was left on her to decide what to do next. Shiro texting her that he wouldn't pull the next move unless she felt comfortable. She was grateful but caved under pressure and hated how she couldn't just follow whatever her heart felt without her head getting the better of her.

"Would you… umm…" Shiro coughed to clear his throat, "what I'm asking is, are you hungry?"

Allura blinked and took a second to respond. Her stomach growled in that moment as he extended his hand out for her to take.

"I guess that answers for me" she laughed, embarrassed.

"You look beautiful today, by the way" he complimented, he knew that he said he wouldn't try anything with her but he was only being truthful and honest.

"T-t-thank you" her blush darkened.

Grabbing a plate, Allura lightly tapped her plastic plate against her lips debating on what she should grab for herself that she knew Lance would eat as well. The perks of having a son that wasn't a super picky eater made her life so much more easier.

Her eyes brightened when she immediately noticed a few Altean dishes that she's long forgotten the taste of, having very little knowledge of how to make them herself.

"Allura" Shiro called her attention, taking her out of her trance from the food her mouth was watering towards.

"Would you like to try a cake pop?" he offered, showing her the one he chose.

Allura gasped, almost dropping her plate of food when she recognized the Altean purple berries used for the cake and frosting of the cake pop Shiro held in his hand.

"Oh, yes!" Allura eagerly closed her eyes, leaning her body towards him.

Shiro took a big gulp, holding the cake pop in his hand and feeding her the small dessert.

This really wasn't helping his restraint to not go for it and kiss her right then and there. In her excitement, Allura failed to see what she was doing to him.

"How is it?"

"It's delicious, have you ever had Altean purple berries before?"

"I have… not"

"Oh, Shiro, you must try it! I insist!" Allura's eyes twinkled in delight, her shoulders dancing as she leaned over the table and reached to grab another one. "Here, say 'ahh'" she told him, trying to feed him the cake pop. Her entire aura was glowing as he watched her, mesmerized by her.

In that very moment, Shiro was falling in love.

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Done! To be continued.

Yes. The Blade of Marmora Galra are Shiro's besties who turned over a new leaf… except for Ulaz who still leans between both sides of the coin. And Shiro is love-strucked, this big softie!

I just finished watching The Blade of Marmora ep. Rewatching season 2 for the third time to get even more hyped for season 3. AHH, JUST THREE MORE DAYS GUYS!

Next chap will be coming either before this week ends or sometime next week.

Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	7. The Heart Of A Paladin

AN: Whoa, thank you so much for the lovely reviews! I'm glad that this lil ol' fic of mine is getting some love. So… dat Season 3 tho. Eh? I binged it as soon as it dropped. I'm still debating whether or not I should go ahead and write a small Shallura one-shot idea I have because of a certain scene that happened in S3. Hmm… anyways, I used minor terminology from S3 in this chap.

All I'll say is that I was really happy to see Kolivan again. I can't wait to see how the Blade of Marmora will help out the paladins in future seasons and get the love and much needed 'thank you' that they deserve from new planets they save from Zarkon's evil quintessence fueled clutches.

Anyways I know that you're all _dying_ to know the origins of Lance and what's going on with his whole dad situation and Allura's past in general but all I can say for now is that patience is key. It's coming. Whether in the next chap or the following after – it's coming soon and with a lot of feels to boot. It's a little bit of a dark/hard/touchy subject. My lips are sealed.

Shout out to FadhiliTheOne and a Guest reviewers – thank you for the suggestions. It's funny since I had similar ideas in mind! I'll try to see how I can incorporate certain scenes into future chapters! I already have a juicy one in mind for the next chap. Mwahahahaha. Oh, I'm a such a tease.

Ps. Before I forget to mention this. I went and revised a few chapters, I fixed minor spelling errors that were bugging me. The only 'major' thing I changed was the name of the Galra homeland. From Municipality of Galra I switched it to the Municipality of Daibazaal. To y'know be more accurate.

Happy reading~

The Heart Of A Paladin

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 **Hey, Allura… uhh… I've decided to change babysitters for reasons… *shudders* so in the meantime, do you mind watching Keith for the day? I promise he's good, just give him a book and he's set. They called me into work on my off day so this is kinda an emergency.**

 **D'aww old man Slav is a wonderful babysitter but I understand if you wish to no longer keep him as your babysitter. Sure! I'd love to take care of Keith, I'm sure Lance will be excited.**

 **Thanks, I really appreciate it. Slav is just so…** ** _old_** **. Sometimes I wonder if Keith is watching over him or if Slav is actually, y'know… babysitting.**

 **Lol, no worries. Whenever you're ready, just come in. The door will be unlocked.**

 **Thanks, you're a life saver.**

Allura happily sighed pressing the power button on her phone to turn off the screen. Setting her phone aside, she continued her work on her laptop on the dining table. "Lance! Can you come here please?" she slightly raised her voice an octave higher, calling her son who was currently playing with his toys in his room.

"Coming!" he yelled back and ran down the hall wearing a blue towel as a cape. The length of the towel dragging behind him as he made airplane noises, "Look, mommy! I'm a fighter pilot! Blue paladin ready for action!" he puckered his lips and tried to whistle to give himself sound effects.

Allura shook her head amused and played along by closing her laptop and twisting her torso so she could receive him with arms wide open. "Blue paladin to Castle! This is _Princess_ Allura, ready for your landing" she giggled as Lance jumped straight into her arms.

She hugged her son tightly and gave his cheek a big kiss. "I love you so much, Starshine" she contently whispered as she held him.

"To the moon and back" he finished and stayed in her embrace until she announced that she had a surprise for him.

Not long after Allura told him that they were expecting company, they heard a soft knock coming from the entrance with someone opening the door.

Lance hesitated, knowing he wasn't allowed to open the door or get near it unless his mom was standing right there. Looking at her for permission, she nodded as he excitedly ran towards the door when he heard Shiro and Keith entering.

"Keith! You're here! You're here!" Lance bounced around.

"Wanna go play? I brought my red paladin Kaltenecker and toys!" Keith proudly held his cow plushie to show him as he turned his body sideways to show Lance his little red backpack.

Lance nodded, "sure! I'll go get my blue paladin Kaltenecker from my room! Wait until you see my toys!" he said, grabbing Keith's hand and running with him into the blue themed bedroom.

Shiro chuckled, "guess I'll see Keith later"

Allura giggled, "I'm glad that Lance has made a friend so quickly and one that lives nearby"

Shiro agreed, "again, I'm really grateful to you Allura. In the past I used to take Keith to my cousin Sven who lived down the street but he moved to the Puig Alps. He was the one who recommended Slav but again… the old geezer has lost enough marbles as it is"

Allura playfully rolled her eyes, she agreed to some degree but on Altea, her people highly respected their elders so it was hard for her to not love crazy ol' Slav from Apartment 88 just the way he is. "You know… you've never told me where you work"

Shiro smirked, leaning closer to her causing her to back up further against the wall at the entrance standing next to the hallway table. "And you've never told me yours"

"Gentlemen, first. I do insist" she coolly said, trying not to blush.

"Oh, role reverse? Okay" he said in such a way that made it sound not as innocent as it should be. His dark gray eyes bore into her blues, like hard steel trapped in a tidal wave. "In the mornings, I work at an auto repair shop and during the night I'm a freelance web designer so I help to run websites or make them for clients. I used to be a senior officer at the Garrison Military Academy but I'm long retired from that"

"You really are an old man" Allura teased.

Shiro laughed, "Guess so. I miss it but it took a lot out of my schedule, I never had any free time. What about you?"

"Cupcakes" she simply told him. She wasn't about to blurt out how after her dad passed away, she inherited everything he left from stocks, bonds, titles, etc. She had money, yes, but refused to tap into any of it unless she really needed to. She was saving the majority for Lance's education and enjoyed living a humble life in the city.

"Cupcakes?" he asked.

"Yup. I run an online cupcake shop. The Balmera's Brew and few other little shops around town buy from me. Weekends are hectic with orders but I'm happy. I'm self-employed and love baking"

"You bake?" Shiro took a step back, dramatically gasping and covering his hands over his mouth.

"Why am I just _now_ finding this out?" he questioned out loud.

Allura lightly punched his left arm and sighed, "because you've never asked"

Shiro made a 'hmm' noise that rumbled deep within his throat as he braced himself to act a little forward with her. Quickly he took hold of her hand and lifted it up to meet his lips, leaning down he kissed the top of her hand and looked straight into her surprised eyes. "There's still a lot that I don't know about you but I'd really, really like to. Anyways, I'm going to be late for work, I'll text you when I'm on my way back" he said still holding onto her hand for a few seconds before he let go and walked out the door with a small wave.

Allura peeked her head out the door as she watched him go as he descended the flight of stairs. Her throat pulsed from her heart suddenly working on overdrive. She closed the door behind her and stayed still for a moment against the door as she tried collecting her thoughts.

"Oh gods, help me" she quietly pleaded to herself.

She wanted, so, so, so desperately to allow herself happiness. To give her heart a chance at healing, to learn to move on from the past. But that's the thing about the past and her nagging memories - it still haunted her each and every single day. Some days she'd wake up drenched in sweat and gasping for air. Other nights, Lance would wake her up in the middle of the night from her screaming and would stay to sleep with her.

She wanted to break down and cry because someone actually likes her for her. Not because of the status she once held nor because of her father's influence. Someone was falling in love with her for her, not Allura the daughter of an ambassador but just plain ol' Allura.

Allura caressed her hand that not even a minute ago was held so gently as if she'd break if he was any rougher with her. Her hand and finger tips tingled from the sensation which quickly started to spread and tingle in her reddened cheeks. She continued to hold her hand and looked at it with a somber smile.

She knew that if Shiro found out the truth and saw how much of a burden being with her would be, she knew that she'd scare him off. Five years ago, she convinced herself that she was destined to be alone for all eternity. No man would ever want her, of course not, not after _that_.

"I'm so stupid for believing" she gritted her teeth, trying to fight back her sudden tears.

Meanwhile two little boys were sitting on the carpeted floor playing an action intense make-belief game about being in space and needing to form voltron the giant lion guardian robot.

"We need your freeze ray to destroy the evil song coming from the bogwaggle cape, Blue!" Keith ordered as he made fighting noises with action figures he brought with him.

"On it, Red!" Lance yelled back as he got up from the floor and pretended to fly around while holding his blue lion toy.

"Preparing to freeze the cape!" Lance said along with, 'pew' 'pew' 'pew' noises to follow the imaginary firing of ice towards a towel they had set on the floor.

Keith switched roles from the red paladin and took hold of the towel on the floor and rolled around in it while evading Lance's attacks with his plastic blue lion toy. He was pretending to be the evil music playing bogwaggle cape while singing the voltron kid's tv show theme song out of tune.

Both Kaltenecker paladin plushies sat next to each other as the kids played with other toys. Running around, jumping, and giggling as they reached the victorious climax of their cape vanquishing adventures in space.

Focusing back on her work, Allura continued to fill in and take orders from her online shop until noon when she noticed the time. Getting up from her work station at the table, she walked to the kitchen and raided the fridge to see what she could make that was quick and easy. She always kept lunch simple and then made a proper meal for dinner every night.

She took out the celery, carrots, and the gallon of milk out setting them on the kitchen counter. Moving on to the pantry she took out the white bread, peanut butter and a jar of Altean purple berries jam.

As she made the pb&j sandwiches, she had her radio on one of her favorite stations that wasn't plagued by dreadful news for once as the soft music filled the kitchen. With the statue ceremony and remembrance for the Altean riots happening not long ago, the news stations both on tv and radio were still going on nonstop about it. She wished that they would just drop their investigating on the matter. None of the royals nor politicians made it out alive except for her by chance of incredible luck and sacrifice.

Leaving the music on, she went to go set the plates of food and cups with milk on the table having already taken her laptop back into her room before calling the boys to come eat.

"Oh boy, purple berries!" Lance said as he sat down and noticed the purple jam oozing out of his sandwich. He squished the bread flat causing even more to come out.

"Lance, don't play with your food" Allura told him as she watched him.

"Are you sure this isn't poison?" Keith asked, staring at the pb&j sandwich with caution.

Allura let out a tiny chuckle, "of course not, Keith, what makes you say that?

Keith made a weird face as he poked the bread once eyeing the purple jam as it oozed out. "Daddy made me a sandwich one time with Galran purple berries"

At the mention of the Galran version of purple berries, Allura let out a genuine amused laugh as Keith tilted his head curious.

"Oh no, Sweetheart. Galran purple berries are extremely sour when you don't cook them. These are Altean, they're very sweet and delicious" she reassured him. In the back of her mind, she made sure to tease Shiro about this later.

"You promise?" Keith still wasn't sure to trust her despite seeing Lance already done with one slice of his sandwich.

Allura nodded, "I promise"

Keith hesitantly took a tiny bite out of a corner and gave it a thoughtful chew before his eyes widened as he gasped.

"It is good!" he sounded surprised.

Lance took one look at him and rolled his eyes, "of course it is, my Mommy is the best cook in the world!"

"I'll need to tell Daddy about this. He's not the best at cooking" Keith sighed, taking a sip of his milk.

"No?" Allura said curiously.

"Daddy works a lot and he's always tired but you know, he's not so bad. He doesn't know how to make a lot of things but he likes trying to. Sometimes he uses me as his guinea pig" he grumbled while crinkling his little nose at the mention of that but continued, "Daddy's really nice and silly and he can be clumsy and forget things alllll the time but I can tell that he's trying his best so that I don't worry about him but I do" Keith commented.

Even if he was still five, he wasn't stupid. He knew that his dad really liked his friend's mom. Even though he didn't fully understand it and thought it was gross, he didn't object to the idea even if part of him didn't mind how things were now. Just the two of them but he knew that his dad deserved happiness too.

"Why do you worry about him, Keith?" Allura softly asked the boy.

"Because Daddy tells me that he's scared of… hmm… he said, 'screwing things up,'" Keith told her as he bit into a carrot stick, hearing the vegetable crunch as he swallowed. "I don't know what that means but I love my Daddy because he's the best in the whole wide world and he tells me that you're really pretty and nice and smell good so I trust you too Lance's Mommy" Keith gave her a stern look with a nod of approval.

Allura was taken back by the small boy. He was still so very young but very insightful. Something deep within her told her that she could trust Shiro with both her heart and healing but her mind constantly nagged her to continue playing hard to get and eventually cause him to grow tired of this game of cat and mouse so that she could stay alone forever.

She didn't want to lose Shiro and this blossoming relationship.

Hearing Keith describe and teach her something new about Shiro made her feel the need to continue fighting her mind over control to her heart. She needed to be brave and find a chance to properly talk to him. If he accepts her for who she is now in the present, then they can figure out whatever this relationship is together for the future moving forward.

"Thank you, Keith" she brightly smiled at the boy.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Done! To be continued.

As I type up new chapters, I ask myself, "are these chapters going to just get longer and longer?" lol. When I'm trying so hard to stick to shorter chapters so I can update faster. I'm cursed to write whatever my brain comes up with next. All the fluff, drama, and angst that I can come up with. Yes. I'm sure only the author here is suffering.

Until next time! Uhuhuhuhu, it's gonna be a good one. Ice cream, a Spongebob reference, hot summer day, sweat and grease. Ahhh, yes. So good.

Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	8. Haunted Memories

AN: Thank you for continuing to support this fic with reviews! :D

Again, I lied on the last AN. I said that this new chap would be great, light, and fun – but in the end, I decided to give y'all a free ticket aboard the FEELS TRAIN. ALL ABOARD. CHOO. CHOO.

That's the thing about my writing, I never know where it'll lead me and go. Please go listen to all the sad songs in the world because I sure did. I listened to a lot of Japanese rainy day mixtapes on youtube. LOL. (Like "left alone in the rain" by Axian. I listened to that one like three times)

Big chunks of the past will be _italicized_ as dreams/recalling memories.

Thanks to the official VLD Paladin's Handbook that recently came out – I'll be including some minor things from it. Like in this chapter – Lance's favorite animal.

Warning: this chapter contains elements/mention of rape.

Happy feels-y reading~ This is the longest chapter yet!

Haunted Memories

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

 _It started with a gunshot._

 _A person's scream._

 _The wail of a mother._

 _The mass hysteria that broke out between a Galran soldier and a mourning father._

 _The roads were flowing red._

 _She remembers being out in the gardens of the Altean embassy, her hands twirling about a little three-petal_ _purple juniberry_ _flower in her hands. How she loved juniberries, they were her favorite._

 _That day she wore a short white flutter sleeve dress that used to belong to her mother._

 _The embassy was packed and busy as a peace treaty was about to be signed. A peace treaty that would end the feuding war between The Municipality of Daibazaal and the Isle of Altea._

 _She sighed contently as the sweet, fruity, crisp smell of berries wafted her senses. She hated being stuck in a stuffy room filled with the chitter-chatter of politics that she knew much too much of but cared little of. She hated the stares and ogling coming from creepy old men trying to undress her with their eyes as she'd accompany her father to meetings. She was only fifteen damn it! But she savored the moments when she could escape to the gardens and just cloud gaze in perfect solitude._

 _"Allura!" a panicked feminine voice called out to her._

 _Allura turned her torso to smile at the woman that had just entered, she was about to offer her to take a seat next to her on her blanket in the grass but something was wrong._

 _She frowned, "what's the matter?"_

 _The woman didn't speak a word, quickly grabbing her hand and forcing her up from the grass. She didn't say anything other than telling her that they needed to go as they exited the peaceful gardens._

 _That was typical of one of her father's security guards. Allura puffed her cheeks and narrowed her eyes as she stared deeply into the back of her head, any harder and she'd set her hair on fire._

 _"What's the hurry?" she tried asking._

 _Waves of embassy staff workers were scurrying about as Allura and the guard she's known almost all her life, headed in the opposite direction towards the conference rooms._

 _The woman halted, letting go of her held hand and turned around to face her, her face grave and serious, "there's been a commotion outside in the marketplace. I was ordered to go fetch you and make sure you and your father are on the first plane out of here"_

 _Allura raised an eyebrow at this, confused, "what sort of commotion?"_

 _The guard that had known her since she was a toddler hesitated, "an Altean child has just been shot and killed by a Galran military soldier. This was the last straw to tip the scale over with the rebels and Altean citizens" she informed her as Allura gasped, horrified by the news, "Allura it isn't safe here anymore, there's a riot in the city and it's heading this way!"_

 _Allura felt her eyes pool with tears. How could anyone just take a life away without any remorse, conscious thought, anything to make them know that their act was cold, heartless, and unethical?_

 _The guard swiftly grabbed her hand again and started pulling her forwards as she felt the vibrations of Allura's quivering._

 _She had no time to comfort the child she practically helped raise, she just pushed forward with a straight-face and continued to make her way to deliver her safely to her worried father. Halfway to their destination, a bomb setting off could be heard in the distance with chants of people yelling to be allowed into the embassy. The shakes of the crowds outside could be felt inside their safe walls as all the staff, security, royals, politicians, and the ambassador grew terrified and started to run around like anxious little ants._

 _"Allura?!" a gruff older man's voice could be heard as a sea of people blocked Allura and her guard._

 _"Father!" Allura shouted as loud as she could, trying desperately to find her father in the sea of unknown faces and bodies._

 _"Allura!" the guard yelled back as Allura failed to notice when she got separated from her guard._

 _"Honerva!" Allura cried out as she was being pushed by panicked people. She had no choice but to run to the opposite direction as rioters started to shoot, start fights, and break everything in sight._

 _Allura feared for her father as her heart skipped beats causing her throat to tighten. She was gasping for air as she twirled around as screaming bodies trying to distance themselves from the rioters that managed to make their way upstairs to where they were currently surrounded her._

 _She almost froze in place until a male's hand gently took hers._

 _She almost jumped out of her skin until she saw who it was._

 _Oh, how relieved she was that he was safe._

 _She couldn't imagine what the news of a Galran solider of all people causing this mass chaos would do to him if he didn't know already._

 _"Your father?" she asked as he guided her._

 _"He'll be fine, yours?" he asked, his body shoving people out of the way to make way._

 _"I… I… don't know" she stuttered, she prayed to all the gods that he would be fine, especially if Honerva had found him._

 _"In here, quickly Allura!" he shouted as he guided her towards an empty banquet hall._

 _"Honerva says it isn't safe in here, we must get out like everyone else!" Allura gasped for air, her mind was racing as the panic rose within her._

 _He squeezed her hand trying to reassure her that they'd be fine, "relax, I'd never let anyone get to you, you're my best friend…" he didn't finish his sentence as he let go and walked towards the windows to take a look at what was going on outside._

 _He gritted his teeth at the sight but calmly ran one hand over his pale silvery hair, his façade changing as this worked to his advantage._

 _Allura's knees were shaking as she fumbled around with her hands trying to tune out the noises and screams just outside the doors they had just entered. She wanted to go hide in a corner and cover her ears. This was too much for her to handle but she couldn't as she felt him come back, standing right in front of her as he gently placed his hands on her shoulders and made her look at him._

 _"Allura, you're my best friend and despite coming from feuding nations, it never stopped our fathers from working together to achieve peace. I'm a crowned prince and you're an ambassador's daughter" he began._

 _"What are you talking about so suddenly? There's a riot going on outside!" Allura was growing hysterical. On any normal day, she'd thank him and tease him for being super cheesy but not today, not right now._

 _He ignored her as he gently made her body touch the wall a few inches behind her. "You're my best friend, Allura, but that simply won't do. It's not enough for me, I want more" he softly told her as she flinched at the feeling of his warm hand rubbing her shoulder and slowly sliding down her arm._

 _Allura's eyes widened, "y-y-you're scaring me"_

 _On any other day, she would be, without a doubt, completely and utterly confused. She loved him, deeply she did as they were raised closely together. Since the day she was born, it was almost guaranteed that she'd be engaged to him as soon as she turned sixteen. But was that even old enough to be called a wife?_

 _Even now at fifteen, she wasn't sure and what if she didn't love him in a romantic kind of way? What if what she felt for him all these years was the type of love you'd show and give a sibling? He had just turned nineteen and no doubt experienced._

 _She was still a child herself. She had no experience with men and didn't know what love even was._

 _Allura finally shut down completely when she felt his skilled lips start sensually kissing her neck and throat as he softly bit into her flesh, his teeth grazing her skin ever so softly, his tongue trailing to her clavicle to repeat the process._

 _"P-p-please s-s-stop" Allura had found her voice after a few silent minutes._

 _"Do you have any idea how long I've waited for this?" he whispered into her ear as he forcibly grabbed her leg and hiked it up his thigh._

 _Allura shook like a leaf as she endured his ministrations of kisses but anytime he aimed for her own lips, she closed her eyes, harshly biting her bottom lip trying to block him from her reach as she shook her head to avoid him._

 _"Stop moving! I will make you love me! You're mine!" he growled._

 _Allura whimpered, she's never heard him raise his voice at her before. He was always so kind and gentle with sweet words, laughter, and merriment._

 _"I'm not ready for this! Please, I beg of you to stop!" she cried as she found the strength to squirm around his embrace as she felt him lift the hem of her dress._

 _He forced her to stay still as he put more strength in his hold to the point of almost bruising her. She could hear him unzip his pants as her face paled – she was terrified._

 _"You're hurting me! You're hurting me!" she wailed as she balled up her hands into tiny fists. She started to hit him and force him off of her but it only made him grow stronger and angrier._

 _"I didn't want our first time to be like this but I'm sure that you'll forgive me someday" he told her, grabbing her chin and forcing her to look into his blue eyes._

 _"It won't hurt if you'd only stop fighting me on this, Allura! I love you, damn it! And you'll love me back whether you like it or not!" he yelled as his nails scratched her hip bone, pulling down the one garment that kept her safe from his foreign touch._

 _She tried fighting him over and over again but she was younger, weaker, shorter than he._

 _He was older, taller, much stronger than her._

 _"No! No! Ahh! Please! NO!"_

"NOOOOO!" Allura shouted, shooting out of bed as her chest heaved, heart pulsing erratically in her chest. She sat up and looked down at her clammy trembling hands. Her body was drenched in sweat as she looked for her phone on her nightstand. The time read 5:05am on a Saturday morning as it was pouring rain outside.

She threw her phone somewhere in her carpeted room as she bent her knees up and wrapped her arms over them. She broke down and cried. She hated having to relive _that_ night. She hated whenever her memories would haunt her and liked to remind her of where her traumas were essentially born.

"Mommy! Are you okay?" Lance harshly whispered as he entered her room. He had turned the light on in the hallway and could see Allura hiding in herself. He was wearing a matching pajama set with little sharks on them while holding his blue paladin kaltenecker the cow plushie in one hand.

"Mommy, I heard you screaming again" he told her as he rubbed his sleepy eyes and climbed onto the bed with her, setting his plushie aside.

When she didn't respond, he put a tiny hand on her back and felt her shaking.

Lance frowned and figured out it'd be one of _those_ nights.

He wasn't stupid; sure, there were still a lot to things he didn't understand still due to his age but one thing he did know was how to show love and compassion. He knew his mom suffered from scary nightmares. They had lessened ever since she started to talk to Keith's Daddy but another one of her episodes was bound to happen sooner or later.

It was only a matter of time.

"Mommy, there, there. Don't be scared anymore, your Starshine is here" Lance placed his cheek against her back, wrapping his short arms around as much of her back that he could touch. He hugged her while chanting the same thing over and over until he felt the vibrations of her trembles come to a halt.

Allura straighten up as she sniffled and looked at her son.

He was her ray of hope in her darkest hours.

Lance smiled at her as he crawled over to face her, "I don't like it when Mommy cries" he truthfully told her as he helped to wipe away her tears with his tiny fingers.

It only caused Allura to cry even harder as she gently pulled him towards her and tightly embraced her.

"Mommy's very happy right now, Starshine" she laughed through her tears as she eased back into this reality. She tried pushing, shoving, and digging her problems away for so very long.

She didn't want the past to hinder what little bit of normalcy she managed to make for herself after escaping Altea.

She wouldn't admit it to herself but she almost wished that she was brave enough to call Shiro. To hear his voice as she found her way out of her dark thoughts and memories.

But she didn't want to be a bother and inconvenience him in any way. She wouldn't and couldn't do that to him.

Lance, her son was the only one she needed.

In the morning, Lance quickly but quietly tried to escape his mom's tight hold on him. He knew that whenever she'd have long nights like this one, she'd sleep in longer than she normally did.

It gave him just enough time to go into the kitchen and make her a surprise breakfast.

He didn't know how to cook and wasn't allowed to use anything other than the microwave and toaster but he'd make do with what little he could do for his mom.

Before he headed out of the room, he heard his mom's phone buzzing somewhere on the floor. Curious, he picked it and unlocked it to see that she had received a text from Shiro.

 **Good morning, Allura.**

 **I'll be dropping off Keith at 9:30am. Thanks again for watching him!**

Lance took a few minutes to try and read the text. The first word he made out was Keith's name and from the context clues he figured it was about him coming over for another play date.

Normally, he'd be really excited about this because Keith is his best friend but he was still really worried about his mom. It was one of the worst episodes he's ever seen her have.

Looking at the time on the front screen of the phone, it read 9:28am. "Oh, no!" Lance whispered to himself as he ran out of the room and down to the hall knowing that Shiro would knock at any second. He was always so punctual whenever it came to dropping off Keith at their place.

He knew that his mom would get upset with him but he didn't want the knocking to wake her up so soon after the long night she's had.

Lance went into the kitchen and took a small blue plastic step stool from the pantry, taking it to the front door so he could undo all the locks on the door and open it.

He opened the door right as Shiro raised a hand to get ready to knock.

"Uhh… hi, Lance" Shiro greeted, surprised to see the young boy at the door.

Keith yawned, still rubbing the sleep away as he waved in a simple greeting. Taking off his shoes, he went ahead to go put his toys inside Lance's room. Lance nodded and looked at Shiro, needing to have a word with him.

With just Shiro and himself standing at the entrance, Lance took his step stool and stood on top to get a little taller as he gestured with a waving hand for Shiro to lean down to meet his new height.

Shiro wondered what the five-year-old wanted to tell him as he leaned down to allow Lance to whisper into his ear.

"Mommy's still sleeping, she had a scary moment last night"

At the mention of Allura having a 'scary' moment, it immediately sent off an alarm inside him as he waited for the boy to elaborate.

"Mommy gets scary nightmares sometimes. Some days they're not that bad but last night…" Lance paused and straighten up to have Shiro face him. "I was really worried because Mommy didn't talk to me when I entered her room. She always lets me know she's okay but not today, she cried for a long, looong time"

Shiro processed this new set of information that Lance gave him and furrowed his brows. "Why didn't she call me?" he groaned to himself.

"Mommy doesn't like asking others for help" Lance chimed in.

Shiro didn't expect the boy to hear him as he nodded. In all the time that he's known her, Allura not once has ever asked him for anything. He didn't count a coffee outing as 'needing' him, if anything, it was always _him_ that was coming to _her_ for help. Whether it was for a cup of sugar like their fateful meeting that day, or needing to watch over Keith.

Shiro always needed her but she never needed him.

"This won't do," Shiro said out loud, "is there any way to make your Mommy happy after this happens?" he asked Lance as the boy eagerly nodded.

"Yes! But shoes first!" Lance reminded Shiro as he watched him take off his boots and set them on the rack at the entrance.

Lance took him by the hand and showed him their small kitchen where he carefully took out everything he needed while Shiro watched and aided by placing the food ingredients on the counter.

"When Mommy is sad, I make my special _Lance's Sharks Supreme_ breakfast!" Lance proudly told him as he took his step stool, got on top and took out two waffles and scooted his body further onto the counter to reach the toaster.

Before he could, Shiro scooped him in his arms and sat him down on the counter instead, afraid of Lance hurting himself in the process. "Why don't you just tell me what goes into _Lance's Sharks Supreme_ breakfast and I'll help you make it, ok?" he smiled at the boy as Lance swayed his legs back and forth.

"Okay, first we make waffles"

"Roger that!"

"Then we put ice cream fudge chocolate syrup mmm!, whipped cream, a whole lotta cherries, and the secret ingredient!"

Shiro chuckled, "what's the secret ingredient?"

Lance gestured for him to get closer so he could whisper it into his ear. Doing so, Shiro leaned down and listened carefully.

"Blue shark shaped sprinkles!"

"Does Allura like sharks?" Shiro asked, amused.

"Yes and no. Hmm… well, she does but not as much as me! I LOVE sharks!" Lance's blue eyes sparkled as he extended his arms and showed Shiro just how much.

Shiro chuckled again and messed with Lance's brown short hair with his left hand. "I'll keep that in mind, thanks"

"Lance, do you mind if I add a bit more to your breakfast special?"

Lance didn't object, "go ahead! Mommy _loves_ food"

Shiro thanked him again and told him that before he'd get started, he was going to go check up on Keith who never returned from Lance's room.

Opening the door wider, right away he spotted the red bundle soundly asleep on the blue sheeted bed. Rolling his eyes, he sighed, "that's what you get for being stubborn and staying up too late" he quietly commented, slowly closing the door back.

He was tempted to go and check up on Allura but decided it'd be best to not walk in alone. If she was emotionally distraught at the moment, he didn't want to do anything to startle or trigger her in any way.

Going back into the kitchen, he took a pan from the high ceiling rack above him, setting it on the stove. Then he searched for eggs, cheese, and vegetables for an omelet. He wasn't much of a cook and almost everything he tried making that was new to him ended up charred to the point of no return but he could at least manage a simple omelet.

Once he was finished, he set the omelet he just made and the sugar loaded waffles that Lance had helped him make onto plates on a wooden bed tray. He glanced at the time, knowing he was cutting it close with getting on time to work but he knew Ulaz would understand - and if anything, gladly tease him for his reason for being late this morning.

He poured a glass of cucumber infused water for her and added a small mint leaf to it. Feeling like it was missing something else, he asked Lance for permission to take a small blue rose from Allura's potted plants on the windowsills.

Taking the tray, Lance led the way to his mom's room. "Mommy, are you awake?" he quietly asked as he slowly opened the door for Shiro to enter with the food.

Allura's room was dark with her purple curtains concealing the dim rays of light trying to seep in. It was still pouring outside but the sun was trying to fight through the grey gloomy clouds in the sky. Lance went and pulled the curtains opened ever so slightly as to not completely shine light in.

Shiro watched as Allura's body twisted and turned in her sleep before she jolted awake.

"Lance!" she yelled out as she felt a small body climb onto the bed to hug her.

"Shh, it's okay now Mommy. Me and Shiro are here to make you happy" he softly told her as he tried to smooth out her disheveled bed hair and kissed her cheek.

Allura's eyes were watery as she looked over to Shiro who was standing by the door, patiently waiting.

"W-w-why are you here?" she croaked as a tear spilled down her cheek.

Shiro didn't reach her eyes and instead looked at Lance with a somber smile on his lips, "Lance, can I please speak to your Mommy alone?"

Lance nodded, not wanting to tell his mom how worried he was for her, instead he kissed her forehead and whispered to her, "Mommy, I made you my breakfast surprise. Shiro helped! I hope it makes you happy"

Allura's lips quivered as she squeezed him once, "thank you, Starshine" she told him as she pecked his cheek with a wet kiss.

Lance quickly crawled off the bed, letting Shiro know that he was going to go wake up Keith before he left the room.

Now alone, Shiro set the food tray on top of Allura's dresser and slowly walked over to her side of the bed.

"I came to drop off Keith since they called me into work again this Saturday, remember? Lance opened the door and…" Shiro sighed, trying to collect his thoughts, "he was worried about you. _I am_ worried about you too, Allura. Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not okay. You shouldn't be worried about me" she focused her gaze on the white carpeted floor. It hurt too much to look at him.

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because regardless of what little you know of me, you don't really know _me_. I'm not worth wasting your time on… I'm…" Allura raised her voice and paused, "I'm nothing!" she crumbled at her truth.

She was inconsolable today.

Her dark thoughts loomed over her head like a waiting noose. Waiting to choke her to death to keep her silent. To shut her up. Her negativity embraced her with opened arms, hugging her, caressing her, speaking sweet nothings of worthlessness to her.

Shiro was rendered speechless. It's true, he didn't know much about her nor her past but he was telling her the truth and being honest when he said that he wanted to.

"P-p-please g-go find s-someone e-else to love. Ch-cher-cherish s-s-someone more de-deserving of i-it" Allura cried, her body shaking like a wet leaf.

At that, Shiro grew frustrated with her words. He couldn't stand listening to her degrade herself like this. He sat down next to her on the bed, trying to reach for her hand but she swatted his touch away.

"Why can't you accept that someone might actually love you, Allura? If I really wanted to play with your emotions, I wouldn't have stuck around! I genuinely care about you but I can't be there for you if you don't start opening up to _me_ "

Allura couldn't look at him, her watery eyes blurred his image and all she could see was the past and the one hellish memory that robbed her of her innocence.

"I'm damaged, Shiro, I'm damaged!" she sobbed. Allura let him grab her hand, at first flinching but then easing into it.

"Allura, look at me" Shiro pleaded.

When she diverted her gaze, he had no choice but to guide her eyes back to his as he leaned forward and pressed his forehead against hers.

"Allura, look at me" he repeated.

Allura tightly kept her eyes shut, violently shaking her head 'no.'

He wanted to kiss her, hold her tight, tell her that everything would be alright but he couldn't approach her fragility this way. They weren't a couple, she could only tolerate hand holding, and he didn't know what was wrong so how could he give her false hope if he didn't even know the issue?

"Allura, what's wrong?" Shiro voice was desperate but trying to remain calm, "Please let me in" he begged.

Ten minutes of silence passed as all he could hear was her sniffling and feel her quaking. He straighten up and patiently waited until she was ready to speak.

"I was…" she began.

"I was…" the words were too difficult to swallow.

"During the Altean riots… I... I was raped" she choked on her words. She was hyperventilating, she's never told anyone this, never faced the reality of her words, she always kept her deep dark secret locked up inside of her.

"I was raped! I was robbed! I was robbed!" she wailed as her tears flowed like miserable waterfalls, mucous streamed down her nose, and her body convulsed in unsteady trembles.

Pain wasn't pretty.

She wasn't pretty at the moment.

Shiro felt like he had just swallowed a boulder, shoving it down his throat, and still trying to digest it - but it didn't make him _think_ any differently, didn't make him _feel_ any differently towards her.

With the most care and with the lightest touch that she's ever known, Shiro tugged her over to him. Pulling her into his embrace as she wrapped her arms around him.

"You're the bravest woman I've ever known, Allura" he rubbed soothing circles on her back.

"Don't let one bad memory defy who you are because you're beautiful both inside and out" he told her as he felt her cry harder at his words.

Shiro rocked her in his arms as she calmed down. He desperately wanted to kiss her temples, wanted to whisper sweet nothings; anything to get her to smile again.

He knew he loved her but having his feelings returned… it was hard.

He could see it in her eyes, that Lance was her pride and joy. He highly doubted that she resented her son in anyway but his birth… his birth had caused her so much anguish.

"Lance loves you and so do I" he whispered as he continued to rock her.

"Why me?" Allura's voice was weak. Her head was resting on his shoulder as he soothed her back. She knew that Shiro liked her in a romantic type of way and as much as she wanted to tell him that she felt it too, she just couldn't. His confession didn't come as a surprise to her but his acceptance did.

She felt Shiro's body rumble as he chuckled, "doesn't everyone deserve to be loved?"

Allura stayed silent at that, she didn't want her negative dark thoughts to cloud her judgement ever again.

"Now that asshole who did this to you…" Shiro thought out loud, "I hope he died during the riots" he bitterly gritted his teeth.

If only he had known Allura five years prior. He wonders if things would be differently. But that was the funny thing about destiny - no one knows how it works and where their path will lead them.

Allura assumed that _he_ did and to all the gods she believed in, she _hoped_ so. _He_ was her best friend that betrayed her trust and emotionally destroyed her. _He_ tarnished her views on love, ruined her for whomever was deserving of her heart.

"Shiro, thank you"

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Done! To be continued.

Did you survive the feels trip? Yes? Good. Here's a cookie, a box of tissues, a gold star, and a pat on the back.

This chapter had to be done.

More flashbacks/dreams of the past will come.

Rape is never an easy topic to cover or even discuss. I've personally known a person in the past who has gone through such an experience but they didn't let it hinder their future. We all come with heavy burdens and 'baggage.' Thus, that is what it means to be human.

Until next time! (Hopefully by the end of this week) I promise this time that it won't be so heavy. We'll be going back to our regularly scheduled program with lots and lots of fluff!

Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	9. Doki-Doki Summer Nights

AN: Thank you all for the flood of lovely reviews! If I'm being completely honest with myself – I don't think much about my stories. It never occurs to me that I could be the reason why someone smiles if they're going through a rough day (or the very reason why a person cries due to my taste in angst lmao) but the point is – it's not something that goes through my head very often and it sincerely touches my heart knowing that my crazy ass imagination can provide a temporary escape from this -at times- hellish reality. Thank you so much! I enjoy writing as a hobby and getting able to share my otp feels with the rest of the world who feel the same about the same ships. I don't do this for the recognition or the reviews, I do it because I wholeheartedly want to~

Please note: I apologize to those who have read this fic since I had my _previous_ username and possibly got momentarily confused. I had meant to change it before even starting this fic but time always seems to elude me. Anyways, this is my _Tumblr (just uppercased on here)_ name as well. I've had the accident of where I'll find one of my stories floating around, getting shared on _Tumblr_ , just to have it credited to _AO3_ – I _don't_ write _nor_ have an _AO3_ account. I've only written on _FFN_ since I was a wee lil otaku weeb and that won't ever change but now I've made it easier to link my stories/tag me on _Tumblr_ if anyone wishes to do so!

A new college semester is just around the corner for me… /cry. So, here's a long chapter for now. In the future, I'll try to stick to shorter chapters so that I can update this story faster since even this chapter took me a couple of days to type out. I can't tell you how much longer this story will be because even I don't know that yet but I just ask that you continue to be patient with me and enjoy the ride!

Ps. I recently wrote a Shallura one-shot titled _They'll Never Know_. It's got science/chemistry puns and pick-up lines inspired by a Shallura fan art on _Tumblr_. It's great (if I do say so myself) and oozes of fluff. Go check it out! :D

Happy reading~

Doki-Doki Summer Nights

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Shiro remembers holding Allura in his arms until her uncontrollable shaking and whimpering simmered down to quiet snores. He rocked her while humming a lullaby that his own mother would sing to him as a child.

That had been a week ago.

Shiro didn't want Allura to feel like he was suffocating her with his feelings so he stayed away as much as he could. He would still text her and drop Keith off with her whenever he had work but as far as trying to further their relationship - he was scared of pushing too hard.

He was incredibly grateful that his 'boss' at his first job was none other than Ulaz. If it were anyone else, he'd be fired for sure for not showing up that previous Saturday.

Now a new Saturday rolled by and again he was stuck at the auto repair garage working overtime. He barely managed to make it on time with accidentally not hearing his alarm go off then having to leave Keith at Allura's and then hitting heavy flow of traffic on his way to work due to someone having the genius idea of crashing into a truck loaded with gum balls.

It wasn't a fun time for him on the highway.

Shiro walked into the shop with an iced coffee from the Balmera's Brew and a Vrepit Sal's food truck homemade elixir energy drink in hand. Ulaz watched him enter as he wiped down a wrench dirtied with motor oil on a white rag. "You know I've contained myself from asking all week but with Thace not being here today to stop me from nagging you – why didn't you come in last Saturday?" he asked as Shiro threw the energy drink his way. Ulaz knew the only time Shiro ever bought from Sal's food truck was as a peace treaty token for screwing up.

Taking the energy drink, he saluted a thanks to Shiro and pulled the tab to open it.

Shiro cringed, still wondering how Ulaz could drink that battery acid induced tonic that had no sign of anything natural in it. He doesn't know how the hell Sal makes it and didn't want to know. Some secrets were best left undiscovered.

He couldn't tell Ulaz how the woman he was crazy for had experienced a very bad breakdown. It wasn't fair to Allura if he put her personal problems out in the public like that, even if Ulaz was his boss, best friend, five years his senior and even if it were only 'guy talk.'

He shrugged, "I overslept" he lied.

Ulaz took a hearty chug from the energy drink and pointed at him with the can, "That's a load of bull. I know you, stop holding the truth from me like an Altean _Klamüirl_ with a piece of fresh meat dangling over its head. You were with that Altean woman from Hunk's kids party, weren't you?"

When Shiro stayed quiet, discreetly sipping on his iced coffee as he leaned over a tool cabinet, Ulaz threw his dirtied rag his way and let out a small annoyed hum.

"Fine don't tell me anything… for now, but don't think I'll stop asking" he told him before downing the rest of his drink, crushing the can against his black jumpsuit and aimed at the trash can to dunk it in.

"Get changed and help me install this new transmission into this hunk of junk"

"Who the hell ordered this?" Shiro asked as he viewed the ancient car that Ulaz was fixing up.

"Old man Slav. He may have lost his marbles years ago, but the man still needs to get around the city"

Shiro deeply sighed, he just couldn't escape that old geezer.

Work was quiet for the most part after that, after all there wasn't much time for chit-chat when the noise of power tools overpowered everything else, even the soft tunes coming from the radio.

Shiro sat on his red creeper roller before laying down on it to get back under the hood of the car when Ulaz put a foot down on the metal handle and stopped him.

Crossing his arms, he narrowed his eyes at Shiro. "Will you tell me now?"

Shiro was about to shove his foot out of the way when Ulaz pulled his number one move on him.

The pleading puppy-dog look.

He heavily sighed, "yes, I was with her, happy now?"

Ulaz's face could've split in half with the huge stupid grin on his face as he leaned down and asked, "were you with her or were you _with_ her?" he asked, implying a sexual undertone to his question. He waggled his eyebrow at Shiro.

At the implication, Shiro flipped him off and laid on his back to slide under the car.

Ulaz kicked the rusted, dented side of the car and complained, "c'mon, give me something to work with here! My sex life is as empty and corroded as the Taujeerian Desert!"

"Then go find yourself a girlfriend!" Shiro yelled from under the hood.

Across town in the apartments, Allura had been slaving away with cupcake and small cake orders left and right. Shay ordered in bulk, while others were for birthdays and special occasions.

She didn't mind having to work all morning, if anything it was therapeutic and helped her mind drift away from her late-night traumas. She only felt sorry for her poor little oven that was doing the best it could.

From the dining table, she could hear the little mumbles and giggles from Keith and Lance who were currently flipping over Keith's photo album.

"Daddy says he's going to take me to the zoo next weekend!" Keith happily announced.

Lance gasped, "ooh!"

Keith's entire torso was leaning against the table's frame as his knees were firmly planted on the chair. Flipping over his family pictures, he paused and looked directly at Lance.

"The next page is my ultimate favorite part of this book. You promise not to tell anyone?" he seriously asked Lance as he held up a tiny pinky up.

"Best friends don't tell others their secrets!" Lance sworn as he stuck out his own pinky, wrapping it around his and promised Keith.

Keith slowly and carefully turned the page filled with various pictures of hippopotamuses. Some had been taken from nature magazines and postcards while others were blurred and out of focus in weird angles - the ones he personally took when he was four. There were a few with Shiro holding a younger Keith close to the hippopotamus's enclosure.

"Aren't they beautiful?" Keith dreamily said as he took one photo out of the plastic folder.

It was a picture of Shiro holding him by the waist as he leaned over the railing to look at the hippos. Shiro was facing the camera and smiling as Keith was too enamored with the mammals to look at the camera.

"This is the first time Daddy took me to the zoo when I was two. It's my treasure" Keith fondly explained, allowing Lance to take hold of the picture in his small hands to admire it as well.

"Wow! I wish I could go to the zoo!" Lance was happy for his friend but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't jealous. But he understood his mom, she was overprotective for a reason.

"Mommy said she'll take me when I'm older" Lance sighed, glancing over to the kitchen where Allura folded in a cake batter in a bowl with a pink plastic spatula. He noticed she had flour on her cheeks as he giggled at that.

"I can ask Daddy if you can come with us!" Keith happily offered.

Lance wanted to jump in joy and rush to his mom to beg her to allow him to go but not after that scary episode they had experienced last week. Lance may not understand many things but he knew how to be considerate of others feelings.

"Maybe" Lance smiled at Keith and switched the topic to something else.

Allura finished leveling a cake and quickly decorated it with fondant. Once she was fully done, she cracked her back and stretched, mentally relieved that she had finished all her urgent orders for the day.

Placing everything into white boxes, she neatly tied them all with pink ribbons and stacked them to go put them into her car.

"Boys, how about we go out for ice cream?" Allura asked them as she carried five boxes.

"Oh boy!"

"Yes!"

The little boys cheered as Keith ran to the door to hold it open while Lance went to the kitchen, grabbed his step stool and climbed up to reach for the smaller box his mom left on the counter.

Once they were settled downstairs, Allura placed a few boxes in the trunk, the rest in the front passenger seat, while Lance and Keith held the smaller boxes in their laps in the back seats.

"I just need to go drop these deliveries off and then we can go to Baskin' Baku" Allura told them as she turned on the car, pulled out of the parking garage and made her way into Downtown Garrison.

Allura delivered the more urgent orders first to residential areas before making her way to the Balmera's Brew where Rax warmly greeted her, taking the boxes of cupcakes from her and then giving her a bone crushing hug.

"Can't… breathe" Allura gasped, lightly tapping Rax's shoulder to politely ask him to let go.

Rax sheepishly chuckled, apologizing, "it's just been so long since I've seen you Allura"

"You're never here when I come in to drop stuff for Shay" Allura giggled, shaking her head at him.

Rax's shoulders slumped as he sighed, "sorry, grandma's been keeping me busy with errand runs"

Allura took his hand and lightly squeezed it, "I'll make sure to make it up to you next time, you just be sure to be here, alright?"

Rax deeply blushed as he eagerly nodded, "yes ma'am!"

"Tell Shay I say hi and that I'm sorry that I can't stay for long. I promised Lance ice cream!" she told him as she walked towards the exit.

"Will do! Thanks again, Allura!" he waved goodbye to her as she left.

Allura quickly returned to the car, buckling her seat belt, and taking the boys who waited for her in the car to their final destination.

Stepping inside the aquatic-garden themed café, Allura was welcomed in unison by twin sisters Luxia and Plaxum.

Allura went straight to the counter and personally handed a small box with a cake to the eldest sister Luxia. "Here's your order" Allura kindly smiled, receiving a grateful 'thank-you' in return. The younger sister Plaxum took out an ice cream scooper and looked at the two small boys whose heights barely reached the glass display.

"What would you boys like?" she energetically asked the eager children.

"Oh! Oh! Blueberry cheesecake with shark sprinkles, please!" Lance waved his hand, jumping and trying to point at his favorite flavor. He turned to Keith and quickly informed him, "I _love_ cheese _and_ sharks!"

The shyer boy patiently waited for his turn, Luxia watching him as she gave a quick glance to Allura.

"Yours?" she casually asked her friend.

This caused Allura to deeply blush and immediately wave her hands in front of her in an 'x' formation.

"Nooo, I only have Lance. Keith is a _friend's_ son that I'm babysitting over the summer" she hesitated on the word 'friend' because she knew that whatever she and Shiro did have going on was definitely _more_ than _just_ being friends but Luxia and Plaxum didn't need to know that.

She wasn't ready to admit it to herself, much less to a client/friend.

"And what would you like, Sweetie?" Plaxum asked Keith who bit his lip and tapped a finger to his lips trying to decide on a flavor.

Keith had a weakness for junk foods, which was partially his Dad's fault for being too lazy to cook whenever he had the chance to but this was ice cream and it is summer… so it was acceptable, wasn't it? It'd be rude of him to not get a flavor he truly likes.

"Hmm… cookie dough with chocolate fudge, please!" he ordered as Plaxum winked at him while mouthing to Allura that they were adorable.

Allura mouthed back a 'thank-you,' continuing her small conversation with Luxia while Plaxum took the kids ice cream to a table. She had loaded up waffle bowls with everything they wanted.

"You want them to have a sugar rush, don't you?" Allura playfully gave Plaxum a 'stern' look. Plaxum laughed and acted appalled by the accusation, placing one hand over her blue apron covered chest, "I would never!" she gasped while Allura rolled her eyes and went to go sit with the kids.

Allura placed her elbows on the table, in one hand she held a spoon taking small bites from Lance's ice cream while the other hand supported her cheek on her palm as she stared out the window.

She sighed longingly.

She had kept her mind focused on work all week ever since her traumatic episode. She felt bad about it since she got Shiro involved in her drama - something that she hadn't intended on doing, or so her brain told her but her heart nagged her to. She couldn't expect anything to flourish if she was unwilling and by all the gods she knew of, she didn't want that to happen.

She had stewed in her hate for one single man for far too long.

There came a point when enough was enough.

"Mommy?" Lance called, gently tugging on the loose fabric of her shirt.

"Yes?"

"Keith says that his Daddy works around the corner"

"Oh?" Allura sounded surprised as Keith nodded, "Daddy works at Uncle Thace and Ulaz's auto repair"

"Marmora Mechanics" Allura remembered the name.

"It's right next door to the knife shop! Uncle Antok and Kolivan own it!" Keith filled in, growing excited by the memories he has of visiting his dad's and uncles' work places.

"Luxite Blades" Allura hummed, vaguely remembering what kind of store it was.

"Would you like to go visit?" she asked the boy who seemed just content in knowing that they were nearby.

"Can we?" Keith asked, hopeful but double checking if it was really okay.

Allura smiled at him, "of course"

Finishing their ice creams, Allura thanked the twins for the free treat while they thanked her in return for the small cake. Leaving the store, Allura took Lance and Keith's hands into hers and walked with each boy to a side of her, making her way down the street and around the corner.

Her heart was pounding loudly in her chest. She knew they were going to see Shiro but she hadn't really seen or spoken to him all week long. She knew that he was doing it on purpose to give her some space and while she appreciated it, she desperately missed him and wished she put in more effort into replying back to his heartfelt texts.

Her mind was starting to swim into a very dark and negative ocean abyss when she stopped herself from wallowing in her guilts when she failed to realize when Keith wiggled his tiny hand from her hold and ran off into the opened garage of the repair shop.

Right next it, as she had vaguely remembered was a bladesmith shop specializing in different kinds of knives, daggers, axes and swords. She suddenly started to wonder just exactly what kind of friends Shiro associates with.

"Daddy! I'm here!" Keith proudly announced as he made his way towards a pair of black jumpsuit wearing long legs that were sticking out from underneath a car.

Keith placed his hands on the bent knees which stirred the unsuspecting mechanic to jolt in place and smack his head against the top of the location he was working under.

"Ow!" Shiro yowled as he rolled out from underneath the car on his red creeper. He tugged on his white earphones and looked up to see a pair of curious dark mauve purple-gray eyes look down at him with their head tilted to the left.

"Keith? Wh-What are you doing here?" Shiro asked confused.

"It was my idea" Allura meekly answered now that she and Lance had fully entered the shop.

"Allura…" Shiro whispered her name, not having been able to utter her name out loud in over a week.

His lips tingled with her name lingering on the tip of his tongue like a sweet melody.

"Aw, the little squirt comes to visit his dad but not me?" Ulaz came out of the office, swiftly scooping Keith up in his arms as Keith clung onto his neck.

The moment was cut short between Shiro and Allura as Ulaz ardently wanted to meet the ever famous Allura who Shiro was being annoyingly secretive about.

Allura greeted him while Lance hid behind her legs like usual.

"Is this your son?" Ulaz asked in such a way that came off too hyper.

"Yes, his name is Lance. I'm terribly sorry, he's extremely shy when meeting new people" Allura shrugged her shoulders, there was nothing she could really do about that.

Ulaz waved it off and gestured with his hand for Lance to wait as he went with Keith in his arms to his office to get candy.

"I promise I don't bite, I'm actually Keith's Uncle. Shiro and I are best friends" he gently told Lance who was still unsure whether or not to accept the small piece of chocolate taffy until he looked at his mom for permission.

Allura encouraged him to accept the candy and thanked Ulaz for it.

"I didn't mean to intrude on your work, Shiro" she gave him a small apologetic smile and then looked at Ulaz, "and Ulaz. Keith just wanted to come in and say hello but we're done now so we'll be heading back home" she told them both as Ulaz set Keith back down, handing him over to her.

Shiro nodded, "I'll text you later" he simply responded.

Ulaz on the other hand, slapped Shiro's shoulder earning another yowl from him as he eagerly waved goodbye to Allura and the boys. "Pleasure meeting you. Do come back and visit, I insist!"

At this, Shiro jabbed his kneecap into the back of Ulaz's leg causing him to lose his balance.

 **Sorry about Ulaz. He can come off as a hyperactive weirdo whenever he drinks this battery acid… err… I mean, this homemade energy drink our local food truck guy sells.**

 **Lol, don't sweat it. I thought he was very... nice. Ok, a little hyper, but nice.**

 **Hey, once the kids are asleep…**

 **Yes?**

 **Meet me on the roof?**

Allura had been home for over two hours now. Once she got home with the kids, they scurried away to Lance's room to go play. Not long after that, she had received a text from Shiro apologizing about Ulaz's quirky behavior.

She didn't mind that at all - weird, she could handle but being asked to meet him alone on the roof? Not so much.

She stared at her phone screen and contemplated on what to type back.

It wasn't like Lance would be in any danger if she stepped out of her apartment for a couple of minutes and it wasn't like she had no good reason to not trust Shiro - she did and her heart knew it but her brain…

"Damn you, brain!" she quietly groaned to herself, annoyed by how she was restraining herself again.

She hit her head against the keyboard of her laptop on the dining room table where she was sitting at. She heard the click-clack of whatever jargon her head against the sensitive keys caused but she didn't care.

"You know what…" she mumbled as she pressed her thumb hard against her phone's touch screen and sent a message back. Locking the screen, she slid the phone away, not wanting to get distracted by whatever his response will be.

 **I'd love to.**

Thirty minutes later, a soft knock alerted Allura that Shiro had finally returned home. She let him in, trying not to make too much noise as he followed her towards Lance's room where the two boys had fallen asleep right next to each other on the blue shark patterned comforter.

Allura's heart melted every single time she'd come into the room and found the two asleep together. She felt incredibly blessed and ever so grateful that Lance had finally found a friend. It was thoughts like these that made her feel at ease with her life choices like the heavy decision to move out of Arus and further west to Garrison.

"I'll go upstairs to the roof in about fifteen minutes. I just need to put Keith to bed and take a quick shower" Shiro whispered as he gently leaned down to carry Keith home.

At the mention of him taking a while before going up stirred something deep within her. With an impulsive kick from her heart, her hand was reaching for his left forearm before her brain could even register the sudden action.

This made Shiro stop and patiently look at her.

Allura bit her lip before she spoke, "s-s-shower after, meet me on the roof as soon as possible, there's something I need to tell you too"

At her words, he nodded and left for his own apartment. He wanted to protest and tell her that he smelled horrible, like motor oil and smog mixed together with anti-freeze. But his heart thumped against his ribcage in an urgent beat at his impatience and curiosity as to what she wanted to tell him.

As promised, he went to the roof that he swore only he and Allura must have known about or at least used since the only décor in the area were small white fairy lights surrounding the small roof area, a couple of Allura's potted plants and herbs, a metal bench, and Shiro's BBQ grill and scattered around nuts and bolts on a work table from small projects he'd take home from the auto shop.

The crescent moon in the sky illuminated Allura's ethereal beauty as he ascended the stairs, closed the door behind him and made his way towards her. All he could see was her long, wavy, silvery waterfalls of hair and a body of a goddess who was sporting short lavender shorts, a simple black tank top, with pink fuzzy slippers.

Allura's back was facing him but she knew that he had made it up.

"You wanted to see me?" Shiro asked, heart thundering as he finally reached her but stayed a few inches in distance. He was growing nervous by the second as he unzipped his black jumpsuit, tying the sleeves in front of him on his waist. He had a white undershirt on, pulling the collar of his shirt and trying to let the cool breeze dry off his sweat because boy, was he sweating bullets.

Allura turned around the second that he was trying to wipe away the mix of grease and sweat off his forehead. Having pulled his tucked shirt out, she could faintly make out his muscular build and lines of abs. 'Oh gods, he's _hot_ ,' she mentally thought while her jaw almost unhinged.

Shiro waited for her to say anything as he tried his hardest to remain cool, calm, and collected. It wasn't easy at all, feeling like he'd pass out from the anticipation of her oncoming words.

Allura wanted to thank him for everything. For being there to comfort her in her darkest moments. For lending both an ear and a shoulder to cry on. For showing her son what a proper male figure should look like in his life. For not rejecting her after knowing that part of her was 'damaged.' Most of all - thank him for showing her heart how to trust and love again.

The only man in her life that she's ever loved was her father.

She had been tainted and robbed from any sort of romantic love.

But that had to end. She was so tired of feeling like the victim all the time. She had every right to be happy. She deserved it. And she knew that he did too.

"Kiss me" she told him.

Shiro raised an eyebrow, unsure if he had heard her right.

When he didn't move to close the gap between them, she took the initiative and pulled him closer by the middle of his shirt.

" _Takashi_ , I want you to kiss me" she repeated herself.

Shiro no longer hesitated when she had used his full name. A 'secret' of his that he had told her once during one of their long pillow talks late at night over the phone.

"Kiss me like there's no tomorrow, like I mean something special. Don't treat me like I'm fragile and made of glass" Allura whispered, her words almost getting caught in her throat.

She refused to cry now.

Shiro gently cupped her cheeks in his palms as he leaned down to kiss her forehead. "You're wrong, Allura" he corrected her, "you _are_ special but you're _not_ fragile" his lips ghosted over her chilled skin.

She gasped when he caught her off guard and claimed her lips as his, his teeth grazing over her bottom lip as he teased her before she moaned and gave him full permission to explore her, unravel her, fill her with the love she's neglected and craved for so very long.

With a small hop, Shiro securely grabbed onto the back of her legs as she wrapped them around his waist. Earning her a small groan from his throat that rumbled deep within him like that of a lion's - Allura could feel, could taste, could hear what she was doing to him.

Slender fingers weaved themselves through his hair, lightly tugging and pulling to keep occupied as their tongues danced in a primal rhythm that consumed the two of them. Shiro had her flushed again the chainlink fence of the roof, the clinking of the fence went on deaf ears as their heads moved in sync.

Allura's hands had fallen to the base of his neck as she hungrily and eagerly kissed him back with much fervor. Shiro's arms carried her weight while his fingers managed to curl themselves around ringlets of the metal fence, adding support to the bounce of their actions.

"I… I… lo-love you" she breathlessly whispered, biting and tugging down on his ear.

Shiro kissed her back, hungrier, harder, wanting her to feel every inch of his passion.

"I know"

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Done! To be continued.

AND NOW… KISS! *Cough* More like _intensely_ make-out. *Cough*

Uhuhuhu. This is only _just_ the beginning. I'll tell you that much. Uhuhuhu.

Yes, I made a reference to Baskin' Robbins with Baskin' Baku. Lmao.

Ulaz will be a taffy lover and Rax has a small crush on Allura but don't worry, it's a minor, minor thing.

The Paladin's Handbook is my holy grail.

Umm… what else to say… uhh… honestly, I had originally intended this chapter to go a different route – nothing bad, just different, like definitely no kiss at the end but the mood called for it dammit – overall, I'm really happy with how this one came out. Again, I never have anything super thought out before typing it – I just let my brain and fingers do the talking when writing.

Next chap: a date at the aquarium!

You know the drill! Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	10. One Step Forwards, Two Steps Back

AN: Ayyyeeee Shallura Fam, thanks for the continued support/reviews on this story! It's far exceeded my expectations. I feel like a little sail boat, waving a white flag, amongst a bleak and vast sea, searching for Shallura fans so I can tell my wee little tale to.

Warning: minor continuation/flashback from what happened at the beginning of Chap.8: Haunted Memories.

Ps. I can't believe I've reached a milestone – woot woot, chapter 10! :D

Happy reading~

One Step Forwards, Two Steps Back

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 _The smoke._

 _The haze._

 _The unclarity._

 _Allura remembers it all._

 _Once he was done with her, she remembers the sound her body made, the thud of hitting the floor like a limp rag doll. She remembers the sound of him zipping up and chuckling as he left her to go look out the windows again._

 _She remembers him acting like nothing had ever happened but the harsh reality of it was that it had._

 _She remembers her entire body shaking uncontrollably as she crawled on the floor, unable to feel her legs and lower half as her unsteady mind tried focusing on an exit._

 _She was whimpering and afraid, her only wish in that moment was to escape him and not the war outside in the halls._

 _She almost welcomed death if it meant that she could stop feeling tainted._

 _She remembers his voice raising in alert, questioning where she was crawling off to when her adrenaline boosted her to quickly grab something from a nearby table and throw it at him._

 _Praying that she could do some form of damage to her abuser, she hastily lifted her body upwards, patting away at the surface of a clothed table and found something cold and weighty._

 _It was a gold candelabra without candles._

 _She remembers that he was furious when she lunged towards him with the weighty object causing him to earn himself a bruised cheek and busted lip; for herself, she had managed to injure her hand from the force and impact she willed her body to give her in strength. Bruised knuckles and minor cuts were nothing compared to what else she wanted to do to him._

 _What he deserved._

 _She remembers thinking that adrenaline was one hell of a drug as her wobbly legs picked her off the ground and aided her in running her way outside the banquet room while supporting herself against the torn walls of the embassy._

 _Then her mind gets foggy on the other details and then she remembers snippets of events such as arriving in Arus City._

 _A fifteen-year-old child who had just escaped: a feuding land, a possible execution, and someone she once loved and confided in had betrayed her, ruined her, raped her._

 _Allura only had the torn clothes on her back and a pink backpack stuffed with wads of cash. She wasn't used to this type of currency and didn't know exactly how much she had but it was a blessing in itself._

 _The first thing she had to do was to establish herself in this new foreign land she was placed in. Alone, lost, and confused, she remembers bursting into agonizing tears until her body could no longer produce saline and she had no choice but to find a hotel for the night._

 _A month after composing herself, she began to feel ill but ignored it, only focusing on fixing up her small apartment and still learning how to become an independent 'adult' in a place where mixed heritages who spoke several different languages were a common thing._

 _Two months into her new life and the illness returned much worse than before. It was then that she had to partake in the most difficult adult decision of her life - go see a doctor._

 _Due to her traumas and past experiences still lingering fresh in her mind, she was untrusting of men. Having not known that she could simply ask for a female doctor, she took it as a blessing from her gods that she was lucky enough to have a female see to her needs._

 _"Are you a virgin?" she remembers the kind elderly doctor asking her._

 _Allura nearly choked on the tears that threaten to fall. She was a good girl who had planned on saving herself for the right guy but now… now no man would ever want her the way she is._

 _She was damaged._

 _"N-N-No"_

 _She remembers the test results coming back after a couple of weeks. The elderly doctor coming back in with a blue folder in hand and a grim expression on her wrinkled features._

 _"Dear, have a seat" she remembers hearing._

 _The doctor gently placed her hands on top of Allura's and slowly told her the results._

 _She remembers her eyes widening as she listened closely. The doctor left her afterwards, with a brief 'thank-you,' and allowed her all the time she needed before leaving the examination room._

 _Allura stood up and walked towards a standing mirror in the room. She stared at her small, frail, thin self and held a hesitant hand against her flat stomach._

 _"P-P-Pregnant" she choked on the words as her lips quivered. With a shaky hand, she covered her mouth as she broke down and wailed into her hands, her body giving out on her as she fell to her knees on the floor._

Allura laid on her side in bed, staring out her window. For once, she didn't have her curtains shielding the sun's day from coming in. She watched and heard as pigeons cooed and landed on the metal frame of the outside bars of the balcony of her window.

She continued to view the birds, the trees, and the buildings that surrounded her. Lost in thought over her dreams reminding her of the past, she shut her eyes and mentally shook the fragmented parts of the nightmares away. She knew it was the negative side of her mind forcing her to remember all the pain she's felt and had bottled up for so very long.

Last night when she was wrapped around Shiro's secure muscular arms, for once she didn't let the nagging thoughts plague her. She didn't allow them to control her love life or herself.

Last night felt like bliss.

Like a dream.

She remembers the small tings, those small electric pulses of fire coursing through her veins. She remembers _loving_ the feeling of him gripping his hands onto her hips as she wrapped her arms around his neck. She remembers the feeling of _ecstasy_ when they'd bump noses, move their lips in sync, and untimely end up connected by a string of saliva as they'd catch their breaths.

She knows in her heart that she loves him and that he loves her too but even with that knowledge, they weren't established.

They didn't leave that roof declaring a social status.

Shiro was still allowing her to make the call.

She appreciated it but it also somewhat frustrated her.

She was no good at this whole relationship and dating stuff.

Groaning, she opened her eyes once again and sprung out of bed. It was still far too early for Lance to get up or for him to come opening her bedroom door to wake her up. Standing in front of her mirror, she viewed herself still wearing her clothes from last night. Her neck, collarbone, and shoulder blades were peppered in hickeys. Her hands traveled to the locations of those in more risqué areas like one close to her breasts. Allura gulped, picturing exactly how that specific love bite got there.

She couldn't let her five-year-old see and question her appearance. Dreading her outfit choice for the day, she thought that she'd be doomed with having to wear something too conservative. It was still too hot to be wearing sweaters or long sleeved clothing.

Allura went to shower and then luckily found something appropriate, getting dressed in a mint green chiffon turtleneck halter top with a black ruffled skort. The beauty of foundation was that it could help hide all the blemishes on her skin that her top couldn't fully cover.

On cue, Lance slowly opened the bedroom door holding his Kaltenecker plushie in one arm and the other rubbing the sleep from his eyes while she was fixing her hair into a high ponytail.

"Mommy, you're awake?" he sleepily asked as Allura turned around and went to go pick him up.

"Yes, Baby. Good morning" she greeted him with a peck on the cheek.

Lance yawned and frowned, "Mommy, I'm a big boy now" he complained.

"Yes, I know" Allura whispered. In her heart, she knew it but she didn't want to accept it just yet. As much as she had struggled when he was just a baby, she probably would have done it all over again.

There was nothing like the bond a mother has with her child.

"Mommy, did a bug bite you?" Lance's curiosity caught her red handed as he poked a hickey on her shoulder that she must have missed while applying make-up.

Allura almost blushed, stopping herself, she vigorously nodded. "Uhh… yes! I left my window opened last night!" she hastily lied.

"Oh" Lance nodded understanding.

"Okay! Bath time, Mister!" Allura announced, heart racing as she carried him to the bathroom and got him ready for the day.

"Where are we going?" he asked, soap studs sticking his hair up.

Allura knelt down next to the tub, making sure there was a decent amount of distance between herself and the soapy water as she took a small blue plastic bowl and scooped water to pour it on his head. "It's a surprise" she simply said, leaving him to stew in the suspense.

"No fair" he frowned, crossing his tiny arms over his chest knowing that whenever she was being vague about something, it was something that he was going to be super excited about.

Once she got him ready, Allura opened the door as soon as Shiro was about to knock. Shiro retracted his extended arm, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head instead. "Uhh… good morning"

"Good morning boys" Allura waved at them, then turned to lock her room.

"All ready to go?" Shiro asked, his hand brushing against hers.

Allura remained cool and collected as she smiled at him, "yes, thank you again for this"

Shiro shook his head, "no need to thank me, I know the boys will enjoy this and…" he paused, "I hope you consider it a date" he coughed.

He left it at that, passing her in the hall as they all descended the stairs leaving her to think about what he just said. They've gone on one official date before but this… after last night, felt different. Different but not bad.

They had decided on taking Allura's car since Shiro had left his at work to get some work done on it. "You sure you don't mind me driving your car?" he asked for the umpteenth time.

Allura gave him an annoyed look, "I've lost count of how many times you've asked in the last five minutes. It's fine, I don't mind"

"Sorry, I just don't want you to get scared"

"Of what?"

"My driving"

Thirty minutes later they had arrived to their destination. As they got out, on wobbly legs Allura dropped to her knees on the grassy patch next to her door and deeply exhaled.

"Oh, thank the _gods_ " she breathed, palms patting the dirt, "land!"

Shiro went around the car, watching her with his arms crossed, "I warned you" he chuckled. "I thought you were only joking!" Allura glared at him, terrified for her and her son's life all the way across town.

"Sorry, I'm an adrenaline junkie. It's kinda hard to give up after driving a motorcycle for so long" his eyes were apologetic but there was a sneaky glint of mischief in them.

"No wonder" Allura replied, of course she had to fall in love with the 'bad' boy.

"Daddy, where are we?" Keith asked, tugging on Shiro's short sleeved black slim button down.

Shiro picked him up in his arms and pointed towards the grayish-blue building with glass looking solar panels, they were about to head towards. "Inside there, there's magic"

Lance held his mom's hand and wondered the same but both parents were being a tease about where exactly they were going.

"I ordered the tickets online" Shiro let Allura know before she could protest, "be right back!" he said as he zoomed away with Keith.

Allura sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Mommy, what's wrong?" Lance continued holding her hand and squeezed it.

Allura gently squeezed his hand back and smiled, "Nothing, Starshine. Shiro's just a really nice guy"

Lance brightly smiled back, "yeah! I really, really, _really_ like him!"

Her heart skipped a beat at that.

Shiro returned not long after, placing Keith down so he could give them all their wristbands. Allura thanked him as she bent down to wrap Lance's wristband while Shiro helped Keith with his.

"Need help?" Shiro kindly offered.

He knew she didn't and she knew the same but she allowed him to do so, so that things weren't so stiff between them. He was only trying to be courteous after all.

Shiro honestly didn't know how to act around her after their intense make-out session that, if they hadn't stopped then and there, he was sure would've led to sex on the roof and that would've ruined what they had going on. He didn't want to jump into a frenzied passion-filled romance without getting to know his partner. The older he got, the more he wanted something solid, attainable, something he could call his and be proud, never losing sight of what made him fall in love in the first place. He knew Allura wanted the same, especially after the hell she's been through.

Shiro gently took hold of her wrist, he couldn't help himself when he ran his index finger lightly over a vein that branched out on her wrist before he wrapped the sticky end of the paper wristband securely over the other side.

Allura quietly watched him to this, feeling like she was teleported to a pocket in space where it was only the two of them. Everyone around them were just blurs moving in slow motion while time stilled for only them.

"T-T-Thank you" she stuttered, finding her voice.

Shiro gave her this intensely burning look as if he wanted to kiss her and not care who saw but he restrained himself and smiled, "anytime"

"This is killing us!" Lance groaned as Keith pouted, "where are we?"

"Sheesh you two, so impatient" Shiro teased as he took both boys by hand.

Allura followed behind them as they passed the entrance and jogged towards the middle, "welcome to the Iverson Aquarium!" she happily announced as both boys gasped.

"This means…" both boys said in unison.

"Sharks!" Lance excitedly shouted.

"Hippos!" Keith's eyes sparkled at the thought.

"Can we please go?!" they desperately pleaded, tugging on their parents' clothes.

Shiro checked the directory seeing that both habitats were on opposite ends. He gave Allura a look, frowning as Keith pulled on his hand to get him to move towards the left tunnel.

Allura mouthed a small 'sorry' as Lance pushed her from behind in the direction of the right tunnel.

 **Let's meet up for lunch. :(**

 **Okay, sounds good. Cheer up. :)**

Shiro checked her reply and then closed his phone placing it back in his jean's pocket. He felt a bit bummed out that they couldn't stay together the entire time but their children's wishes were far more important than their own.

"Daddy!" Keith called out as Shiro made his way towards the glass.

"Aren't they beautiful?" Keith gasped in awe of a sleeping hippo laying against a rock on the surface. "Oh, look! Look!" he said when he watched another hippo appear from somewhere in the murky greenish-blue looking water and swam closer to the glass display.

Keith placed both his hands against the glass and pressed his face as close as he could get using his tiny hands as binoculars.

Shiro stood right next to him and ruffled his hair, chuckling at his antics.

Across the aquarium, Lance ran towards the area of the glass display where there was a giant sunken shipwreck. He jumped in joy, pointing with his finger when he noticed a great white swimming around in an intimidating predator-like style.

Allura followed after him, quickly reading Shiro's response before reaching her son. She smiled at his wonderment of the aquatic creatures as all sorts of sharks swam in the same blue waters.

"Mommy! Mommy! Come step on this!" Lance gasped when he noticed a clear glass square in the middle of the fake wood flooring of the area. He dropped down, getting on his knees to view anything that swam in the small transparent space. Cupping his hands into binoculars, his tiny body danced when he noticed a hammerhead swiftly darting away.

Allura and Lance were the only two in the room. Quietly, she went and sat down with Lance on her lap, on the clear square as they watched sharks pass them by. Occasionally she'd test him and ask what kind of shark passed by while he enthusiastically answered with facts he knew.

Two hours later, Shiro and Allura met up in an empty jellyfish exhibit. They chose the perfect day to come to the aquarium when everyone would rather go to the beach or stay in-doors to beat the heat. Shiro had bought food which to Allura's dismay caused her to pucker her lips in a cute pout that made his heart melt as she had no choice but to begrudgingly accept his chivalrous acts.

The kids ate their sandwiches and drank their juice boxes in peace as they swung their little legs on the bench and shared stories of the sharks and hippos they saw.

Keith proudly showed off his brand new pinkish-red hippo plushie to him while Lance surprised him and showed him, his brand new royal blue shark plushie.

Allura finished her meal and sat down with her legs crossed on the floor in the center of the large glass where hundreds of jellyfish swam in an ocean of beautiful bright colors. She loved the mystical feeling that they gave off as they swayed to the flow of the water.

Shiro came and sat down right next to her.

"Hi" he softly greeted.

"Hello" she said back, smiling as she watched him look at the jellyfishes swaying.

Whenever Allura watched the jellyfish it was then Shiro's turn to stare and focus on her instead. His heart skipped a beat when he noticed the way she'd roll her shoulders or neck. Even though she was wearing a turtleneck styled halter top, he could still make faint traces of the hickeys he left on her body.

 _"Allura…" he groaned as his hips unconsciously bucked, causing the fence to clink at the sudden movement. This earned him a small squeak of arousal from her. This want for her was driving him mad but in the back of his mind, he knew he had to control himself before doing anything they'd both regret._

 _'Patience yields focus, Shiro' he reminded himself as he lowered his lips further down south to the beginning dip of her breasts._

 _'Damn this tank top of hers' he thought as his hot tongue licked an area for a hickey. His lips, tongue, teeth all worked in harmony to mark her as his. In his lust filled mind, his ego got the best of him, thinking about teasing her by giving her such a risqué bite. A reminder that this wasn't a wet dream._

 _Allura came undone in his touch, without thinking, her hands gripped onto his hair and shoved his face closer to her chest. Her legs felt like jelly, tightly wrapped around his firm waist. The flexibility of the fence bouncing her back, causing her to feel everything that she was doing to him. She was no expert on men but over her years, thanks to the internet she's learned a thing or two about what sort of physical reactions men have during intimate activities._

Shiro avoided looking at her as he laid down, shoulders crossed behind him to cushion his head. Tapping his foot against the other, he mentally hummed a random tune to stop his cheeks from burning.

He was no saint.

He had been around, done stuff.

Both legal and illegal.

But Allura was different. In a good way. Very good way.

He couldn't be her first for many things but damn did he want to.

He wanted to erase her pain and haunted memories. Replace them with joy and peace.

He wanted to shower her with love.

He didn't want to screw things up with her.

Allura silently laid down with him, taking hold of his right hand and weaving her fingers with his. His prosthetic hand was cold but she's never felt so warm before.

She turned her head to look at him as he watched her back.

"I'm sorry this wasn't much of a date. Kinda hard to when there's kids around" she whispered to him.

Shiro could hear the faint giggles of the boys as they played with their new toys on the bench. Shaking his head, he lightly squeezed her hand. "It's fine, as long as they're happy and you're happy - I'm happy too, besides there's… always next time" he hesitated for a moment.

Allura agreed, "I can't wait" she told him, reassuring him that she'd love a do-over.

In the evening, Shiro stood at Allura's apartment entrance while carrying a sleeping Keith in his arms. Handing her the keys back, he allowed her to open the front door.

"I had a great time today, thank you for everything, Shiro" Allura whispered as he helped her keep the door open while she carried a sleeping Lance in her arms.

"These kids are getting heavy" Shiro joked as he bounced Keith up to support him from slipping in his arms.

"Ditto" Allura softly laughed, "I'll text you later" she promised, getting into her place.

Shiro left her to go to his own apartment. His mind filled with pleasant thoughts and new memories from their outing to the aquarium. They almost felt like a complete family today.

Allura had just enough time to tuck Lance into bed when she heard a sudden knock at the door. Raising an eyebrow, she went to the door expecting it to be Shiro again. Maybe he had forgotten to ask her something that he couldn't wait to tell her via a text. She was about to open her mouth and say something witty as she opened the door when she suddenly paused.

Her hand shook, becoming unsteady as she held the doorknob. Eyes widening.

"Allura…" the man breathed, "I've finally found you"

Allura took a step back in terror.

"L-L-L-Lo-Lotor…"

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Done! To be continued.

If any of you have watched (or the 12eps that Netlfix has) of the original 1984 Voltron's – you'll know _exactly_ how crazy obsessed Lotor is with Allura.

I honestly can't wait to see if the writers will do anything about that in VLD/season 4. Childhood friends? Allura rejecting Lotor's advances? Lotor being a creep? Sign me up!

My schedule will start to fill up with school and all… so I ask for some patience with that. Yes, I'm well aware I'm a troll/tease with my cliffhangers. Mwahahaha.

Until next time!

You know the drill! Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	11. Moving Forward

AN: Thanks for being patient with me and for the lovely reviews~

Man… has this been some week.

Ahh! I can't wait to see what new news NYCC will bring us this upcoming October~ So hyped!

Don't have much to say other than…

Happy reading~ :)

Moving Forward

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

 _Her hand shook, becoming unsteady as she held the doorknob._

 _Eyes widening._

 _"Allura…" the man breathed, "I've finally found you"_

 _Allura took a step back in terror._

 _"L-L-L-Lo-Lotor…"_

 _She watched as the taller figure slowly took a step into her apartment, into her Castle. Stunned into silence, she took a step back on wobbly knees, her mind trying to process how this was even possible._

 _Sure, she didn't know if he even managed to escape the riots in Altea but she never expected him to know exactly where she was._

 _"Aren't you going to say something?" Lotor calmly asked as he eyed the small picture frames on the walls and hallway table._

 _Allura eyed the frames, cursing her need to capture every single moment of Lance's life._

 _What could she honestly say, she loves her son endlessly and unconditionally._

 _Quickly, she slammed a frame down by the hallway table. Taking a deep breath, she let it out in a ragged pace and then proceeded to walk towards Lotor causing him to halt from trying to enter any further in._

 _She also cursed her obsession with cleanliness around the house, normally she kept her bedazzled pink baseball bat in the hallway closet but she took it out while organizing the small space, moving it to her bedroom for the time being._

 _Her hands would have to do._

 _Before he could ask any more questions, Allura swiftly raised her hand and slapped him._

 _"How dare you come into my home expecting a warm welcome!" she angrily gritted her teeth as she watched him rub the reddening soft spot of his cheek; triumphant in lightly scratching him with her nails._

 _"Okay, I may have deserved that one but… doesn't age come with forgiveness for the past?" he asked, watching her heaving chest as she took a defensive stance._

 _"Forgiveness my ass! I am not the same little girl that you… raped! The same little girl that you took advantage of! I am no longer weak and chained to you!" Allura yelled, harshly breathing through her nose, trying to not get too hysterical._

 _"I heard you got pregnant…"_

 _"I just want to be in my son's life…"_

 _"You will never forget my touch…"_

" _We can finally become a family…"_

 _He chanted to her as she lunged for his throat, holding him against the wall._

 _"Oh, go bleach your roots you creep! You are no father! And you will not dictate how I choose to live my life!" tears welled up in her eyes, threatening to fall but she kept her composure, yelling at him, letting him know just exactly how much pain and suffering he's caused her – her torment of five long years._

 _Lotor smirked as he allowed her to choke him, "are you done yet?"_

 _Allura looked at him incredulously as he took hold of her arms and pushed her off him._

 _"You will never get rid of me, my Dear" Lotor maniacally laughed in victory as if he had won._

 _"What?" Allura's eyes widened._

 _She took a step back, tripping on Lance's blue lion toy on the floor, how did she not notice that before? Falling to the ground, she tried backing away as Lotor came and bent down to her level, grabbing her by the front of her shirt, the fabric curling around his fisted grip._

 _"I meant something to you once upon a time, didn't I? Can you really blame me for wanting you so badly? I desired you, Allura, and so what if we started a family too soon?" Lotor questioned as he leaned closer in._

 _Allura could feel his ghostly cool breathe on her face as he leaned in to brush his lips against hers._

 _Tightly shutting her eyes, she bit her lips and tried to stop him from kissing her again._

 _"You're wrapped around my finger. It's about time you stop fighting the truth. Lance will always bind us" he told her as she opened her eyes, shocked._

 _"H-H-How do y-you know h-h-his n-name?"_

 _Lotor darkly chuckled, "there's nothing I don't know about you"_

 _It was then that Allura's motherly instincts kicked into hyperdrive, feeling an intense need to get her son the hell away from this lunatic. With all her force, she kicked him off her and started a crawl before trying to get up to sprint towards Lance's room._

 _Lotor audibly sighed and dug his nails into her ankles as he started to force Allura back on the floor to drag her away. Thrashing around, Allura cried out remembering the sounds of the past, of the first time this had happened. Her body started to tremble as she grabbed hold of the legs of her hallway table._

 _"Get away from me! Please! Don't touch me, you asshole!"_

 _"Now, now, don't fight me, Princess"_

 _The hot tears freely fell as she began to lose the fight._

 _"Have you forgotten my touch already? Let me remind you"_

 _She desperately needed to get to Lance but in that moment, she was only focused on one person, one name alone. Allura wasn't one to rely on others, having grown accustomed to depending on herself alone but once she got a taste of what it felt like to be loved, to be needed, relied on – she never wanted to let it go and forget the feeling. For once, she wanted someone to rescue her from her living nightmare._

"SHIRO!" Allura yelled, jolting awake.

Her hands were clammy and shaky, body sweating, chest heaving with a quickened pulse. It took her a moment to recognize that she was in Lance's room and not in immediate danger.

"I-I-It w-was just a-a d-dream?" she questioned as she moved her head off the pillow and watched as her son was soundly asleep.

She remembers bidding Shiro a goodnight last night and then carrying her son to his room.

She remembers feeling so happy that she decided to stay with Lance for a bit in his bed but ended up falling asleep.

But she also remembers Lotor coming back into her life like a nightmare and it haunted her to the core.

"It felt so real…" Allura wiped the tears coming down her cheeks, eyelashes wet and stuck to her skin as she took in a deep breath. Inhaling and exhaling, she tried to shake the feeling away. The only thing she desired in that moment after knowing that both she and Lance were safe was to see Shiro.

Still feeling out of her element, she fetched her phone and texted him.

 **Can I see you**?

Downstairs at the entrance to the apartments, Shiro felt his phone vibrate in his purple basketball shorts. Digging into the deep mesh pocket, he found his phone surprised to see Allura texting him so early in the morning.

 **Sure, if you don't mind a morning jog around the block. :)**

Allura read the message and smiled, running would surely aid her in forgetting the nightmare she just had. Her mind would not win this fight of clinging onto Lotor.

Getting dressed in a matching pink with blue stripes nylon running shorts and bra set and tying her hair into a high ponytail - she made her way downstairs and had to shut her mouth before she could ogle a shirtless Shiro. His chest was defined with ridges of muscles and abs, masculine and muscular but held a story with each and every scar placed upon it like a constellation of planetary wars conquered. There weren't many but they were visible. She could also clearly see where exactly his skin ended and his prosthetic arm started. To see him not bothered by who saw his exposed chest and right arm - it was truly admirable in her eyes.

"'Morning, _Beautiful_ " Shiro greeted her as he gave her a thumb's up for the outfit choice.

Allura's heart fluttered but in that moment she could only manage a weak smile.

"Ready to get down to business? I must warn you…" Shiro eyed her, mentally taking in her form. She had defined muscles but not overly muscular. "I won't go easy on you, it's kinda hard to tone down my Garrison Military Academy days"

Allura shook her head, slowly easing back into this reality where everything was fine, " _bring it on_ " she encouraged as she stretched her arms and legs.

Shiro jogged in place, patiently waiting for her.

A few minutes later and they were off, running three blocks near the apartments and stopping again once they reached GCP, sitting down at the park benches to cool down. Shiro said he wouldn't go easy on her but took into consideration that Allura most likely didn't want to be gone for very long due to leaving Lance sleeping back in her apartment, otherwise he would've gladly challenged her to a longer morning run.

Allura opened her water bottle, taking a swig almost finishing it as Shiro squeezed his bottle to splash his face and head.

She nearly choked on the water when she stared at the water streaming down Shiro's shirtless self.

"Do you go running every morning?" she asked, needing there to not be any silence between them otherwise she'd just continue to undress him further than he already was with her eyes.

Shiro shook his head, "nah, I'll try to go out running at least twice a week. All the other days I'll stay indoors and workout at home"

"I'd like to see that…" Allura dreamily sighed, not realizing what she had said until after she said it, "err… I mean, your equipment!" she wanted to kick herself, that didn't sound right either.

It was then that Shiro realized that he has yet to invite her over to his place.

"Oh, yeah of course! You're always welcomed to, Allura" his smile reached his eyes letting her know that it was a genuine invitation.

Allura thanked him and then stayed silent for a couple of minutes, just people-watching as they'd pass by walking their dogs or couples strolling by hand-in-hand or with their kids.

"So… do you wanna head back before the kids wake up? I'm sure that Keith is already up and ready, probably eating his cereal by now"

"Sure, I wouldn't want Keith to worry about your whereabouts and if I'm not there when Lance wakes up, he'll most likely panic and cry" Allura got up from the bench, stretching her sore muscles and decided to walk the rest of the way home with him.

Halfway to the apartments, Shiro spoke up noticing the way that she repeatedly chewed on her bottom lip with eyes that were miles away.

"Something on your mind?"

His question briefly snapped her out of her thoughts, "oh, it's… nothing"

"Allura…" Shiro began, his voice in a tell-tale sign of wanting her to open up, "remember: no secrets"

Allura deeply sighed, slumping her shoulders as she stopped by a secluded orange blossom tree. The fragrance wafted her senses temporarily relaxing her as she braced herself in finding the right words.

"Last night after you left with Keith to your apartment, I must have been tired that I don't remember knocking out when I put Lance in bed. In my head…" she shuddered at the memory, "it felt so real, Shiro. I could have sworn that Lotor… Lance's father had found us… had found _me_ and he _knew_ about Lance" a cold chill ran down her spine, "he knew about _my_ son and it petrified me. Lotor can hurt me as much as he wants but my son…" Allura's voice nearly broke at the thought of Lotor ever coming into contact with Lance and what legal actions he could possibly pull on her just to take him away from her.

She flinched when she felt Shiro gently hold her trembling shoulders in his hands.

"And it's embarrassing… because you know what… _who_ I wanted there to save me the most was…" she felt her entire face heat up as she confessed, "it was you, Shiro. I so desperately desired to see you when Lotor nearly took advantage of me again in my dreams… I… shouldn't burden you with this…" Allura sniffled, she couldn't help the tears from falling.

They weren't technically a thing and she hated feeling weak and having to rely on others.

"Shh… shh… hey, c'mon now" Shiro gently shushed her as the pads of his thumbs rubbed soothing circles on her skin, "I accept you with all your flaws and imperfections, Allura. I've never felt burdened by you, if anything I _want_ you to come to _me_ whenever you feel suffocated by your thoughts. You're not alone, not anymore" he whispered, leaning down to kiss her forehead.

"I wish that you'd believe me when I say that I love you" Shiro painfully confessed.

Allura did believe him but she couldn't fully bring herself to embrace it. She was beginning to until she had this nightmare. While in her nightmares Lotor reminded her that they would always have a connection through Lance being their child, she knew she couldn't rest easy and completely forget him until she _knew_.

It had been five years but the paranoia lurked in the back of her mind, constantly feeding her anxiety after anxiety until ultimately, she'd push everything and everyone away.

The Altean riots memorial had put her on edge.

Since moving to Garrison City, that's all she's ever heard about.

Back in Arus Metropolitan, the only time she had heard anything about the riots was when they first occurred. After that it was as if all traces of it had vanished into thin air.

Allura hugged him, not caring that his body was drenched in water and sweat.

"Please be a bit more patient with me" she begged, clinging on to the hope that his love wasn't fickle.

"I'd wait an eternity for you, Allura" he lifted her chin up, tilting his head to give her a lingering sweet kiss.

Allura thanked him again before parting ways to their own apartments. She felt like she'd continuously thank him for all the little things he did for her. To anyone else, it may not seem like such a big deal but to her, his actions spoke volumes.

Once she got back into her apartment she and her son had fondly named the Castle - Allura made her way to Lance's room to check up on him.

Entering the room, she found him still asleep only now he was facing the opposite direction having moved. Quietly she walked over to his bed and knelt down on the soft carpeted white floor, brushing Lance's bangs away from his face as she leaned in and gave him a peck on the cheek.

She continued to lovingly caress his cheek, immensely relieved that he was not in danger from a mad man. Lotor may share the same blood as him but he was no parent.

 _Allura remembers when she found out the gender of her baby. It took her a long time for the news of her pregnancy to really sink in and accept. She was not one for abortions and would not condemn this baby just because she didn't agree with the way it was conceived._

 _She remembers the first sound of a rapid heartbeat and a tiny little creature that looked like a jiggling bean inside of her stomach._

 _She cried until all her tears dried out that time, instantly falling in love with her small jelly bean._

 _And now she was back at the same doctor who had broken the news to her about her pregnancy the first time. She remembers how cold the ultrasound felt on her warm skin. She was anticipating the gender for months, not caring to be traditional following Altean customs of waiting until the birth to know._

 _She didn't care what gender the baby was as long as it was healthy and growing as it should inside her._

 _"Congratulations, it's a boy!" the nurse announced as she showed Allura her baby on the monitor's screen._

 _Allura nearly broke down then and there from her joy._

 _That had been a little over four months ago._

 _Now at nine months, Allura felt pretty confident in obtaining all the proper things to welcome her baby into the world. The only downside was that her current apartment was filled with older tenants who indiscreetly and loudly whispered behind her back, constantly judging her for being so young and having a round belly._

 _She was petite and heavily pregnant. Overtime she had grown a back bone, not caring whether the women in her complex gossiped about her or not especially since she was unwed, staying single by choice._

 _She remembers the long lonely nights when she'd finished adding little things here and there to her nursery, like the family album that she had just completed, filling it with what little photos she had of herself when she was younger and her father. Those happy memories of growing up on Altea that she would forever cherish._

 _She wanted her son to know who his grandfather was and to always keep his memory alive for him just as much as the memory of Altea itself._

 _"And these are Altean juniberries, I promise you that someday you'll get to see and smell them, Lance" she rubbed her protruding stomach as she felt little kicks to her side, "it's bedtime and you're keeping me up, Starshine" she deeply sighed, more amused than annoyed with her active baby in her belly._

 _She remembers that same night once she was finally able to go to bed - not long after she was entering a deep sleep, she suddenly shot out of bed convulsing in pain as she felt her bedsheets get soaked in water._

 _Her water broke and she was trying to remain calm about it._

 _She had no one and the only friend she had, Shay lived miles away in Garrison City._

 _"Don't panic, you'll be fine. I just need to catch a taxi to the hospital" she told herself, taking in gulps of air as the pain came and went in intervals._

 _"Lance, please be patient. Be good for Mommy"_

 _A newborn's cry could be heard as the team of doctors and nurses cheered. Allura was so tired that the only thing keeping her heavy eyelids from closing was the sound of her baby taking in his first breaths of life._

 _She remembers when they handed him to her. His small patch of brown hair, his tiny hands and feet, and his cries calmed down not long after she finally held him close to her chest._

 _Allura was exhausted but in that moment, she forgot all about the pain._

 _The pain of her water breaking, the pain of being in labor for over eight hours, the pain of desperately wanting an epidural, the pain of finally delivering her baby._

 _All alone and doing one of the most adult things she could possibly be doing at her young age._

 _None of it mattered in that moment, the only thing that did was the intense and overwhelming love that she felt for her small jelly bean._

 _"I'll always protect you, Starshine" she whispered, kissing his forehead before she was finally allowed her much needed rest._

Allura was taken out of reminiscing about the past when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.

Quickly getting up and out of Lance's room so that her phone wouldn't start playing her ringtone, she answered the call before seeing the caller I.D.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Allura, turn on your tv now! It's urgent!" she heard the other person on the line say, recognizing that it was Shay.

"Is everything alright?" Allura worriedly asked, raising an eyebrow as she placed her phone on her shoulder.

Balancing the phone between her neck and shoulder, she went to the coffee table in her living room and took the remote control. Flipping the channels until she reached the news channel, she heard as Shay told her, "just watch" on the line.

"This is Ezor reporting for Channel 84! I'm here to report some shocking news, considering the recent Altean riots memorial that commemorated Ambassador Alfor just a few months back in spring in our beautiful Garrison Central Park - forensic scientists and researchers decided to take a trip to the Isle of Altea to see if they could salvage anything from the ashes of the once great nation. In their studies and search they managed to find the remains of several politicians and the royal family! One that we can clearly identify are the bones of Prince Lotor from the Municipality of Daibazaal - the Prince was present during the riots. That same day, a peace treaty between these two feuding nations was supposed to be held but unfortunately interrupted by rioters and a Galran soldier shooting and killing an Altean child. As you can see Acxa, back at the studio, I'm here in what remains of the Embassy of Altea inside a banquet hall. The Prince most likely died due to asphyxiation from smoke, the full cause of death is still being investigated. I'll continue to update folks back home as more news comes in…"

"Allura…" Shay was about to say something when she heard Allura mumbling to herself.

"He didn't escape… he didn't run… but… why"

"Allura…" Shay called her again.

"Lotor…" Allura let the news sink in, dropping her phone on the floor ignoring Shay on the line as her legs gave out on her.

"He's… dead"

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Done! To be continued.

Mwahaha and y'all thought Lotor was still alive. Honestly, I debated on this for _days_ but in the end, no matter what I thought of – I didn't want to make Lotor super problematic in the present. I'm happy with my little trolling twist tho.

Hopefully I can update the next chapter much sooner than this one. It's gonna be good and there will be cake. (The cake isn't a lie, I swear!)

Until next time!

You know the drill! Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	12. Three Little Words

AN: AAAyyyyeeeee if you're still following/reading this story – thank you and for reviewing! I always love getting to read what y'all think.

Just a few things: 1. Let's just pretend that the legal age of alcohol consumption is something like that of Europe's – so, young. 2. Picture Shiro in whatever fancy/sexy formal/semi-casual attire your heart wants. 3. Josh Keaton's car karaoke on Twitter seriously does not help the Shallura feels, especially when he sang R Kelly's _Ignition_ (main/original version) Bless. I listened to that and Jhené Aiko's _Eternal Sunshine_ a lot while writing the second half of this chapter.

Trivia: did anyone catch Ezor's news Channel being _84_ from the last chapter? 1984 being when Voltron Defender of the Universe first aired on tv~ that's before my time but I like trying to throw little nodes to the original whenever I can. There's definitely a big one in this one!

Happy reading~ :D

Three Little Words

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

 _Lotor massaged his bruised cheek while letting the blood from his busted lip touch the inner corners, tasting the strong iron of the red liquid._

 _He didn't bother chasing after a weakened and frightened Allura, knowing well enough that he had caused her trauma. She was just so stubborn in his eyes, he couldn't understand why she couldn't see just how much he truly loves and worships her._

 _He wasn't abusive, swearing that this would be the one and only time he'd ever lash out on her. He contemplated what he'd do for minutes as he went back to looking through the window of the banquet hall. He could see more rioters, this time from the Galran side arriving in the masses, the streets running cold with derogative chants against the Alteans, the skies illuminated in hues of red, yellow, orange, and smoke from torches._

 _Lotor figured that by now Allura was long gone. Most likely finding his mother, knowing she too was well capable of escaping this mass chaos. He deeply sighed as he heard loud voices coming from just outside the banquet's doors, feeling the vibrations coming from their movements and force._

 _He figured that if it were Galran rioters, he'd for sure be dead, knowing the citizens of Daibazaal weren't exactly huge fans of his father's politics or his lack of involvement in them as their future king._

 _If Altean, he'd be dead as well, accused for starting this whole mess even if he was innocent on that part at least._

 _No matter what route, he was a dead man either way._

 _Lotor wasn't a man who feared death, what he feared was the one woman he desired most, not loving him in return._

 _Clearly, this was the case therefore he had nothing else to live for, no other reason to really._

 _He patiently waited with his hands behind his back as he continued to stare out the window._

 _He heard when they finally busted through the doors, yelling, "there he is, get him!"_

 _Turning around, he kept a prideful and composed demeanor._

 _He watched as they threw the makeshift battering ram created from some Altean embassy pillar to the side as they all lunged towards him._

 _Lotor was no fool._

 _He could easily take on five, perhaps even ten men on his own if he had a sword, but at least fifty and unharmed? He couldn't._

 _When the leader of the group had him gripped and pinned to the glass of the window, Lotor laughed mockingly. The fools had the audacity to want to torture him before getting the job done._

 _Admirable in their own right, he'd give them that much respect as a warrior himself but he was tired of living and waiting for them to go around like a misplaced circus parading around, chanting all the terrible things they'd do to him._

 _He had gotten a mere taste of his precious sweet Allura, despite it being via force and not consensual at all - he could die in peace knowing he had at least that, even if the memories would be bitter and foul in hers._

 _"Just get it done already" he ordered in a strained voice, the air growing thicker from the opened door allowing the flames to follow them in._

 _"You don't get the pleasure of begging for death!"_

 _"You're no Prince of mine!"_

 _"Down with the Galran Dynasty once and for all!"_

 _"Beat him up!"_

 _"Stab him!"_

 _"Choke him to death"_

 _Chants. Then there was coughing. Eventually silence._

 _The idiots couldn't do anything when asphyxiation came to claim them all on Altean soils._

Allura swirled around her wine glass as she stared at the half-filled glass with red wine. Sitting with her legs dangling off the edge of the apartment's roof in a small brick patch where the fencing was broken off, she deeply sighed as she watched the flickering lights of cars and people down below. The sounds of nightlife in the city did nothing to help her drown out all the possibilities as to why Lotor chose to not get away from the collapsing Embassy.

She had all day to mull over her thoughts thanks to Shay offering to come over and pick up Lance having been far too distracted to fully focus on her son or do anything for that matter.

Part of her felt immensely relieved now knowing that Lotor was no longer a threat on her subconscious but now… now she felt the most confused she's ever felt.

It was hard to get rid of years and years of memories she's created with Lotor. He was once a person she could call her friend, admire, and love in a familial way. When she was younger, if her father had willed it, then and only would she have respectfully married Lotor even if she didn't love him in return. Despite not being royal by blood, she still had her duties.

Allura deeply sighed, the hairs on her arms raising with the rising chilly breeze while her hair swayed softly behind her. Her knees were frozen from sitting on the roof for well over two hours now.

Her lips touched the rim of her wine glass, about to take a swig when she felt a presence a few inches behind her.

"I… saw the news" she heard Shiro whisper.

Allura hummed in acknowledgement.

"Would you like company? Or I could just leave you alone…" he offered.

Shaking her head, she patted the empty bricks next to her.

He quietly took her silent invitation and sat down right next to her. Even though he was wearing jeans, he could feel the cold emanating from her legs.

"You're freezing" he observed as she nodded.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked when ten minutes of silence passed them by.

Allura shook her head, "no… I'm fine"

"Allura…" he started in his tell-tale voice.

Allura slightly turned her head to look into his eyes, "I'm fine, really. I'm… just in this state of not knowing whether to jump in joy on _his_ grave or spit on it or cry on it. Just because Lotor lost his marbles… it doesn't mean I'll forget him completely overnight" she glared down at the dark wine and spilled some down below.

"You know you're allowed to feel all those ways"

"I know"

"But?"

Allura shivered as a sudden cold chill hit her, feeling it on her spine, arms, legs, deep into her very soul, "but the fact that I've been haunted by a _ghost_ for five years… it's just… ridiculous? Infuriating? Laughable? I've lost countless hours of sleep, mental stability, my _innocence,_ and sometimes I feel like part of my sanity as well…"

She let bitter tears slide down her cheeks, momentarily warming her numb face.

Gripping the wine glass, she sniffled, shivering from her emotions and the chilly weather, her shoulders slumped as her lips quivered, finally coming to terms with things.

She was finally _free_.

Shiro did the only thing he could do in that moment - offered her a shoulder to cry on as he turned his torso to gently pull her closer into his chest to allow her to wrap her arms around his neck and cry it out.

He took in every choppy breath, every shudder from her body, and every tears soaking into his black tank. He took in all her pent-up frustrations and pains into him and turned them into comfort and reassurance.

"Shh… shh… I'm here, _Beautiful_ "

Allura couldn't vocalize her thanks, only managing to grip his neck tighter letting him know.

"Hey, if you need something stronger than wine, I have half a bottle of Everclear stashed under my bed" he half-seriously joked.

He felt her briefly vibrate in a small chuckle, "I appreciate that, Shiro"

It was now October and Allura had about two months to let everything fully sink in.

If she was being honest with herself - she was feeling good. Better than she had in a very long time. Now she able to focus on the future and whatever it may hold in store for her.

Lance had even noticed the difference in his mom, having no need to really get up at the dead of the night and go check up on her anymore but out of habit, he'd still do it every now and then, smiling and sleepily walking back to his room with his Kaltenecker plushie.

"Wow, I can't believe you moved to the Puig Alps!" Allura exclaimed, balancing her cell on her shoulder as she folded in the whipped frosting she just made.

"I know! Crazy, right! A city gal like me living in the countryside… it's an adjustment, I'll tell you that much. I do hope you'll come and visit me once I fully settle in. I miss little Lance so much!" the feminine voice on the line said.

Allura chuckled agreeing, "and he misses you too, Romelle"

"You know, I've met someone"

"Already? You barely have a month living there!"

"I know, I know. I already know what you're going to say, dearest cousin, but despite all my failed relationships in the past… I don't know… I feel like this one might be different?"

Allura heavily sighed into her phone, "how so?" she asked.

"Well one for starters, he has an accent and two, he drives me nuts but I can't get him out of my head. He was out in the fields farming when I was out grocery shopping and saved me from falling into a ditch. It was love at first sight? I mean, I don't necessarily believe in that mumble-jumble but hey, he's hot! And who knows, by the time you actually come and visit me, we might even be a thing!"

Allura rolled her eyes, switching her cell to her other shoulder as she walked away from her mixing bowl and went to get more items from the lower shelf of the pantry.

"Uh-huh, whatever you say"

"Just you wait Allura, I'll make this dreamboat mine!"

"I completely support you" she replied automatically, having said the same repeated phrase countless of times to Romelle.

A few minutes later, Allura promised her cousin that she'd try to make it to the Puig Alps for Christmas before hanging up and getting back to fulfilling her cupcake order.

Taking out a new batch of cookies and cupcakes from the oven, she took her oven mitts and carefully took out the trays, setting them aside on the counter and then placing a new set of trays into the oven to bake.

While she was doing this, her phone dinged with a new text message coming in.

 **Hey,** _ **Beautiful**_ **… uhh…**

 **Yes?**

 **I was thinking, since I'll be free from my second job tonight…**

 **Shiro, the suspense is killing me. Just tell me,** _ **please**_ **.**

 **Would you like to have dinner tonight at my place? Katie and Matt are begging Shay for a sleepover so she contacted me first. She said she hopes you aren't bothered.**

 **N-No! Of course not, I already know Lance would not mind in the least bit. Lol.**

 **Great! So… how does seven sound?**

 **That's perfect! :)**

Allura locked her home screen, clutching her phone against her chest and smiled. Shiro was always considerate, allowing her room to breathe, giving her all the space she might need in order to cope with things in her life that dealt with Lotor. It had been far too long since their little moment on the rooftop.

"Lance, can you come here please?" she called out while putting the tray she had just gotten out of the oven onto a cooling rack and then started to prep a piping bag.

A second later she could hear a little voice say, "coming!" as Lance came hopping in on one bare foot as he tried to balance himself on the side of the kitchen entrance.

One glimpse at him and Allura raised a questioning brow, "Baby, what are you playing?"

"Hopscotch with Blue! It's still my turn!" he said while pointing down the hall to his room where his Kaltenecker plushie was currently waiting for his return.

She smiled, shaking her head and leaned down to his level, "how would you like to spend the night at Auntie Shay's tonight? Keith will be there too"

At the mention of his best friend, Lance all but forgot about his hopscotch score and set his foot down to bounce in joy. "Oh, boy!" he excitedly gasped and then paused, "but what about you, Mommy? Won't you be lonely by yourself?" he thoughtfully asked.

Allura loved that he'd take her feelings into consideration. She gave his chubby cheek a big kiss and shook her head, "don't worry, I'll be just fine. You just have fun with the twins and Keith tonight, Starshine"

Lance hugged what he could reach of her legs, thanking her again, then returning to his room to go pack up the things he'd like to take for the night.

In the past Allura had been hesitant about not being close to anywhere her son was. Even if she had befriended Shay when she was still in the early stages of pregnancy, Lotor had severely damaged her trust in others. Shay had been nothing but understanding towards her despite not knowing the full reason why she was reserved and overprotective.

Now with the news of Lotor's passing, she felt a new cycle beginning in her life.

One of healing and mourning.

Later that day, on cue a knock on the door alerted Allura opening the door to greet Shay.

"All aboard the Auntie Shay's train of fun!" she announced as Keith, and the twins Katie and Matt made their way in.

"Is there a Lance living at this Castle, Ma'am?" Shay asked Allura as she playfully giggled, rolling her eyes.

Silently nodding with an amused smile on her lips, she counted down to three on her fingers, waiting for Lance to come running out of his room already dressed in his favorite blue sharks in space patterned pajamas.

"Do you have your toothbrush?" Allura asked him, checking down a mental list of things he'd need for the sleepover.

"Check!"

"Blue?"

"Check! I'd never leave Kaltenecker!"

"Clothes for tomorrow?"

"Yup! I mean, check!"

Allura double checked his mini backpack to make sure he wasn't missing anything.

"Okay, looks like you're all set. Be good and listen to Auntie Shay" she reminded him.

"Yes, Mommy!"

Allura allowed Shay to take the reins after that. "And here's the dozen triple chocolate cupcakes with cookies'n'creme crumble frosting. I do hope that you aren't planning on wiring the kids with sugar tonight"

Shay gave her a look as if asking if she didn't trust her, "of course not, the majority of these are for Hunk alone! He loves your cupcakes!" she laughed, putting Allura at ease and making her feel complimented over the fact that someone like Hunk genuinely enjoyed her baking.

Shay and the kids bid her farewell as the echoes of children's laughter filled the hallway and just as quickly faded into the distance as they descended the stairs.

Allura watched them disappear before she closed the door and decided to get ready for her date in exactly one hour.

Those girlish school crush jitters and nerves returned, filling her empty stomach with tight bundles of aches and fluttering butterflies.

Normally she was used to taking quick showers so that she would have more time to get things done in the mornings but for once, she took the time in getting ready.

She honestly didn't know if it really made much of a difference but it definitely helped her relax.

She shaved, washed her hair, cleaned her face, did everything in her feminine powers to look desirable.

The concept of looking or feeling sexy weren't really things that she focused on or really gave much thought on but tonight was different.

She wasn't looking nor hoping for dinner to go further down south and lead to other acts of intimacy.

No, all she wanted was a romantic evening where it was just the two of them growing closer.

Shiro and Allura.

Allura and Shiro.

Allura bit her lip, nibbling on it as she'd do anytime she was feeling nervous out of habit. She rummaged through her clothes trying to find something appropriate. Not too conservative but not too revealing either. Something just right.

In the end, she went with a simple black backless lace-up mini dress with T-strap peep toe platform pumps.

She kept her hair down and only sprayed a bit of glitter in it and kept her make-up natural with a reddish burgundy lip.

"This is only dinner at Shiro's place… don't accessorize too much, Allura" she reminded herself as she did a once-over on her standing mirror in her room and then left.

Her knees started to quake when she reached 120's door.

She had texted him that she'd be there in two minutes.

Resisting the urge to bite her lip, remembering she had put on lipstick for once, she didn't know how to act or greet him once he did open.

Should she play the sexy date and lean against the door frame with her chest up in his face?

Should she slump her shoulders, play with a curl of her hair and awkwardly wave at him?

Or should she just shyly stand there and wait for him to open and once he did become bold enough to hug him and leave her lips imprinted onto his cheek?

She didn't know and wasn't given much time to create a pose or persona as she heard the door creak open.

She heard as a "whoa" escaped his lips.

"Cliché or too much?" she awkwardly asked, wincing.

Shiro instantly shook his head, "n-no! You look… _alluring_ "

He wanted to say more but his thoughts weren't acting appropriate in that moment.

He wanted to tell her how stunning she looked that he wasn't sure if he'd be able to keep his hands off her tonight.

He wanted to tell her how the thin straps in the crossed pattern of her backless dress didn't do much for his mind trying not to undress her with his eyes.

He wanted to tell her how she sucked all the air from his chest and left his throat dry.

He wanted to be suggestive and tell her how her dress would look much better on his bedroom floor instead.

None of those options were appropriate enough but he loved the soft glitter in her hair that made her shine like stars.

"You know that was lame but I'll excuse it because you're cute" she genuinely laughed.

Shiro let her in and closed the door behind her. Now this is when her nerves really did kick in. He wasn't kidding when he said that his entire apartment had wooden flooring.

"I envy you already" she deeply sighed, hearing her heels tap around.

"Really, over my wood floors?"

"Do you know how hard it is to clean red wine from a fully white carpeted floor? It's a nightmare"

Shiro chuckled, taking a remote to dim the lights and guided her direction towards his dining room. "Sorry, I only have the heavy hitters so I'm really glad I have wood"

"You know… I took you for a beer guy"

Shiro looked at her in faux insult, "the cheap stuff makes me sick. I'm not so proud of many things in my rebellious phase in the past but I _am_ proud to say that I can whip up a mean cocktail"

"Hmm… maybe I'll take your offer some other night"

Shiro liked the sound of that. She was suggesting that she was open to having more date nights at his place.

"I'll hold you to it" he smirked.

She nodded in promise.

"You must be hungry" he said as he watched her gasp at the décor on the table.

Red cinnamon apple scented candles were lit with autumn leaves splashed around, the shining silverware nicely complimented the black lace table mats and cloth napkins all on top of a decently long rectangular cherry wood table.

"Shiro, this is…" he didn't let her finish that sentence as he gently held his left index finger an inch away from her lips.

"Finish that sentence once I bring out the meal I cooked us up" he had her seated in one of the six chairs and then briskly made his way into his kitchen to get the plates.

Shiro came out a few moments later with two plates, setting one down for her and one for him next to her, then he went back into the kitchen to get a pitcher and two wine glasses.

"I present to you, a nicely cooked herb butter chicken with rice pilaf and seasonal vegetables with a homemade sangria, mildly alcoholic" he winked at the last part.

Allura was speechless, "I thought Keith said you suck at cooking?"

"Ouch!" he dramatically smacked his forehead with the back of his hand, "I only suck at making things I'm unfamiliar with, thank you very much"

Allura giggled, "this is amazing, Shiro, thank you"

Shiro watched the candle's flames emit a light that hit her eyes just right causing them to sparkle. If it were possible to fall even more deeply in love with her - it was this moment.

She looked so free of worry with a curious wonderment radiating off of her.

He desperately wanted to kiss her but fought the urge.

The night was still young and he still had one more surprise up his sleeve.

They spent dinner pleasantly eating and talking about everything and anything on their mind as Shiro asked Allura how she'd rate his cooking.

She thoughtfully chewed on the bite of chicken and danced in her seat, giving him two thumbs up.

Once they were done with the first course, he asked her for permission to blindfold her with a red silk he took out of his back pocket.

Allura gulped, mildly fearing for the worst. She wasn't quite ready to take their blossoming relationship to the next level just yet.

"Is this some kink I should know about?" she cautiously asked.

Shiro had to bite back a laugh as he shook his head, "as much as I'd _love_ to discuss bedroom kinks with you… tonight's innocent enough. Scout's honor" he pledged.

Allura stopped herself from biting her bottom lip again and closed her eyes.

"I'm trusting you" she told him as she felt his presence behind her now.

"I would never break your trust, Allura, ever" he told her as he gently put the blindfold on her, careful to not catch ringlets of glittery hair into the knot.

"Just give me a second to clear things off the table" he spoke as she felt him effortlessly slide her chair further from the edge of the table.

Minutes passed as all she could hear were things clanking and moving around.

Her legs unconsciously shook as she waited for him to finish up. Being blindfolded was a new and very foreign feeling to her. Having all but one of her senses incapacitated made her feel extremely vulnerable.

But he asked her to trust him and she needed to believe in that - in him.

"Okay, I'm back. I need you to stand up for me and follow my lead" he softly instructed as she felt flesh, guessing that he was going to guide her with his left hand.

Allura let out a breath that she hadn't realized she was holding in as she got up on wobbly legs and followed him with a tight embrace to his forearms.

"I won't let you fall"

"I got you"

"We're going to sit on top of the table"

He let her know step by step what he was planning while reassuring her again and again to trust him.

Allura was grateful for it as her nerves slowly eased away.

"Couldn't you have just blindfolded me once I was sitting on top of your table?" she snorted, now finding this entire situation a little silly but amusing.

"I guess I could've of but what fun would that have been?" he chuckled as he made sure to not touch her anywhere she'd flinch away from him, keeping to her hands as he allowed her to use a step stool to get on the table.

"Are you sure that this table will be able to support our weight? I don't want to owe you a new table. It looks expensive" Allura felt her way around the table with one hand while the other made sure her ass wasn't showing, trying to cover up her back.

"Don't worry about it, if we both fall then I'll gladly pay your medical bill"

"Thanks, I feel much safer now"

"Anytime" Shiro lightly patted her hand, "move to the middle and we'll be set"

"Okay" she replied, not entirely sure about this whole thing, finding it a bit weird but not nearly as weird as some Altean traditions, especially the wedding types.

"I'll be right back" he told her again as she nodded, getting as comfortable as she could on top of the cold wooden table. She bent her legs and tucked them into herself so that she could keep control of her dress riding up.

Shiro came back a second later and got up on the other side of the table.

"Before you take that blindfold off, I just want to say two things: one, please don't kill me because it casually came up one day when I was talking to Shay at the Balmera's Brew and two, please don't kill Shay for telling me what flavor of pie you like"

Out of everything, the one word she latched onto was, "pie?"

"You can take it off now"

Allura did as she was told and gasped, letting the silk cloth fall from her hands onto her lap and clasped both her hands against her mouth as her eyes widened.

Shiro had moved all the candles and what looked like even more onto the shelves all over the dining and living room.

A warm glow illuminated the dim room as he held a pie in his hands that had 'happy birthday' written in cursive whipped cream.

"I know it's not for a couple of days but I wanted to celebrate it with you alone and if you're not entirely mad at me for doing this then this pie is all for you. It's sweet potato, your favorite"

Allura stared at him speechless, the words unable to come out but the tears did.

"No one has ever done something this sweet for me before" she whispered, the hot tears trickling down her eyes. Her vision becoming blurry with the flicker of the flames causing her to see everything like bokeh lights in hues of orange, yellow, white, and red.

"Shh.. Shh… Allura, I'm sorry I made you cry. It was the complete opposite of what I was trying to do…" Shiro frowned, setting the pie to his side.

Allura leaned to reach over for his left hand and shakily squeezed it, shaking her head, "no, I'm not sad, Shiro. I'm just really, really happy"

She laughed through her tears not bothering to wipe them away.

In that moment, she realized something that she's known was there all along.

She's told him before but now she was able to fully give her heart to him.

She was able to bear her soul and allow him in.

She was no longer chained to the past, haunted by the memory of someone once held dear to her.

She was finally able to respond to his feelings.

"I love you, Shiro"

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Done! To be continued.

Yay! They'll finally become a _real_ couple!

I am so ready for season 4 of VLD, the weather to drop even further, cinnamon apple candles, pumpkin spice hot chocolate, and pies! Mmm… sweet potato.

The cake wasn't entirely a lie in this chapter this time because there was pie! But there will be an actual cake coming up. Since we don't exactly know Allura's birthday, let's just pretend she's an autumn baby.

I still don't know how long this story will be but I'm definitely aiming for Christmas time in the Puig Alps.

Next up: a short break from this romantic development and instead a look into Shiro and Keith's past.

Until next time!

You know the drill! Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	13. The Hardships Of Growing Up

AN: Wow I can't believe AngstFest2K17 is still going on. This is a Shiro-centric chapter with the majority in italics/flashback mode. He's been through stuff. Warning: dark themes are present.

Thank you to those who continue to show me that there's interest in my little Shallura tale. Reviews always allow me to connect to you guys as the readers and of course a great motivator.

Trivia: Anyone catch Romelle's little cameo? She was Allura's cousin from Planet Pollux in DoTU. She'll be making her full appearance later on as well as Sven. I can't wait to get to that! And if anyone was wondering _why_ they were sitting on top of a table - it's because I'm a sucker for 80's romcom movies and wanted to reference the ending to Sixteen Candles.

Notice: I've decided that I want to aim for at _least_ 15 chapters INCLUDING bonus/extra chapters/scenes! I don't want to drag out this story for too much because I have other au ideas I want to get to for Shallura. Sometimes not everything I had originally intended on writing makes it into a chapter so this will be a great way to! I'll be using some of your suggestions from the reviews but if there are more things you'd all like to see – please do leave it in a review! I will give full credit to those ideas I end up using.

Happy reading~

The Hardships Of Growing Up

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 _At age Ten…_

 _He learned what it meant to miss someone terribly._

 _He learned what it felt to have a void fill his now hollow heart._

 _He remembers his blood soaked hands trembling as he tried to lift his mother's head up._

 _Why was there so much blood?_

 _The intruder who had tried to rob their home hastily escaped after firing once. His mother was only trying to protect him, putting herself in front of the danger._

 _He remembers everything happening so fast._

 _She smiled serenely at him, barely able to whisper that she loved him and telling him that she was sorry for leaving him so soon._

 _Her body limp in his arms as she slowly turned cold._

 _He remembers shaking her fervently, begging her not to leave him._

 _Everything changed that day for him._

 _At age Fifteen…_

 _He had tasted his first woman._

 _Had indulged in adult things._

 _Started to experiment with drugs._

 _Found a group of no-good friends who were a few years older than he and were just as lost as he was._

 _For five years, he had struggled with finding himself and how he could contribute to this world._

 _He desperately struggled with finding a purpose, constantly wanting to end his life._

 _Bright, cheerful, optimistic._

 _Mere words to describe a dead part of him._

 _In recent years, he turned reclusive and temperamental._

 _His father had given up on him long ago._

 _He remembers ecstasy as he indulged in mind-numbing pleasure._

 _The moans, the slick bodies, the sharp nails clawing at his skin, the high he'd get from sex._

 _Mixed with drugs and alcohol - he had the perfect one-way ticket to hell._

 _Being a nuisance to the police didn't help either. His new leader and group of friends encouraged him to steal, set things on fire, destroy public property as a way of 'therapeutic' help to him._

 _The list of criminal records continued to pile on._

 _His father had remarried that year which pissed him off even more._

 _How could his father just tarnish the perfect image and remembrance of his angelic mother by marrying some random Galran whore?_

 _He often hated having to come back to his home to retrieve clothes and minor things left behind._

 _He hated having to yell and thrash around, forcing his way out anytime his tired father tried to plea with him to stay but not once did he ever regret raising a hand on him._

 _He just couldn't stick around._

 _The pain._

 _The sounds._

 _The memories of where his mother was murdered._

 _It was unbearable._

 _But his friends gave him a purpose; he wasn't stupid though, he was perfectly aware of what his destructive behavior was doing to his life._

 _It was either this or visiting him at a tomb._

 _At age Seventeen…_

 _He had been living on the streets and in friends' homes for three years._

 _He reluctantly agreed to return home after seeing the wrinkles on his father's aging face._

 _He knew he needed to stay and help around his mother's home despite hating his stepmother._

 _He didn't agree with the talks about wanting to add to their already broken family._

 _A baby wouldn't fix things._

 _But it would give his father a son that he could never be._

 _A son he could shape and mold to be a perfect law-abiding citizen._

 _A son that his father could be proud of. Unlike him._

 _He had immensely calmed down since his wilder, younger years._

 _After some point, he got bored with the same routine of sex, drugs, and being a criminal._

 _His friends remained loyal to him but their leader… he had to endure some excruciating painful lashes and beatings from his leader in order to fully leave their group._

 _Part of him thanked his ex-leader for what he's done for him, making him the man he is today but the other part of him knew that what he was doing was smarter, that leaving was the best thing he could have ever done for his future._

 _He couldn't live the rest of his life following someone else's orders._

 _He needed it when he was younger, desperately needed the structure but now… now he felt more confident in himself and his choices._

 _He was finally back home._

 _His father had agreed not to try stopping him from leaving in the middle of the night and returning whenever he felt like it._

 _His father had stopped questioning him, he was just happy to have his son back home._

 _At age Eighteen…_

 _He had been home for almost a full year._

 _His stepmother gave birth to a happy, healthy baby boy._

 _He had protested the thought of a child for so long but when it happened, he had no say in what he thought, he hadn't been home long enough to really care._

 _Something in him changed though, despite hating children._

 _His stepmother would have him change diapers, bottle feed, and stay up in the dead hours of the night with his new baby brother._

 _He could hate his father and the whore all he wanted but a baby was an innocent creature._

 _Slowly he had started to become accustomed to caring about someone else._

 _He hadn't felt a need to hold anyone in his arms since he last held his mother's bloody, cold, and lifeless body in his arms._

 _Unlike his father who, even with his age, could still take care of himself - Keith couldn't._

 _Keith was just a baby._

 _Innocent, pure, loved._

 _Things that he no longer had rights to._

 _His birthday was coming up within a few weeks._

 _His 'parents' had talked and talked about going on a family trip to help strengthen their bond with him._

 _He found their efforts futile._

 _He was long gone._

 _In a void where dark thoughts and tendencies lurked._

 _He had only stopped the majority of 'bad' things because he grew bored with it, not because he wanted to. He didn't hate the thrill, only that it brought him no escape as it once did._

 _He felt freed, hating having others tell him what to do._

 _If he wanted to return, he knew he always could._

 _He had made a family of his own after all._

 _He remembers they had arrived in the tropics of the Isle of Altea just three days prior to everything going down in flames._

 _He knew he had committed a lot of wrongs in his teenage life._

 _Most, he couldn't even bring himself to excuse, beg for mercy, apologize for._

 _His father was far too kind, perhaps even foolish for forgiving all his son's past mistakes._

 _He knew that his father was disappointed in him._

 _But he went off and got remarried so he didn't care._

 _They may have been related by blood but they were no longer a real family._

 _He remembers his stepmother constantly having him watch his baby brother while they went sightseeing._

 _He knew it was mainly to keep tabs on him, not because they really needed him to watch over Keith._

 _Having him run loose back home in Garrison City was one thing but in a foreign land?_

 _He stuck it out, not really caring to explore for himself anyways._

 _He remembers the locals always mentioning the Ambassador's daughter as if she were some kind of Princess._

 _They'd gush non-stop about how much of a beauty she was both inside and out._

 _How they couldn't wait until the fifteen-year-old marries the visiting Galran Prince once she was sixteen and old enough to._

 _He remembers stumbling across a small secluded neighborhood in the poorer district of Altea where not many tourists would even dare venture into._

 _He was used to street fights, bruises, self-inflicted wounds, broken bones, etc._

 _If anyone tried to mess with him or even had the audacity to even try to mug him - he knew how to handle himself._

 _Sometimes he'd even welcome a good fight._

 _He remembers the small group of children he found playing just outside their homes in the rocky dirt roads._

 _They were playing soccer when the ball suddenly rolled to his feet._

 _He remembers mildly scaring them, children unused to seeing tourists in their parts of town, especially one with a long scar across the bridge of his nose._

 _That scar had quite a story on it for another day._

 _Since his stepmother for once took over her actual responsibilities as a mother and took Keith with his father to some local zoo and gardens - he was free to do whatever the hell he wanted._

 _Kindly smiling at the children, he had lightly kicked the ball back towards them to restart their game._

 _Giving him a toothy smile, the children ran towards him to pull him by the hand to come closer._

 _Things were pleasant for a while until there was a loud agonizing scream and the echo of a gun that had been fired nearby._

 _He had lived on the streets long enough to know that was no firework._

 _They stopped playing as he urged the kids to get inside._

 _From there, his mind gets fuzzy and then the next thing he remembers is the street he was on getting flooded._

 _A nearby dam from a river had just collapsed._

 _He remembers hearing a man yell something in Altean before he used his torch to ignite a house made from wood and straw-bale._

 _He didn't have to think twice before his fight or flight kicked into gear._

 _He couldn't chase the man who had started the fire as he was long gone, running up the steep hill now._

 _Instead, he had focused on the children he was just playing with._

 _A language barrier divided them but they understood that they needed to get out._

 _He can no longer recall what exactly happened other than in a matter of seconds he was now trying to get the children out from underneath their fallen home. He coughed as the air grew thick with smoke. He wasn't about to leave these kids and their mother trapped in their own house._

 _He remembers them thanking him as he moved on to help other families out. Most were mothers with their children, fathers probably working in the inner parts of town._

 _He pushed another group of children away from the walls of their house crumbling down in flames._

 _He was about to go run across to another house when he heard cries and pleas for help when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in the back of his head._

 _Someone had caught him off guard in the smoky haze._

 _Later he would find out that it was a rioter and that he was hit with the back of a rifle._

 _The next thing he remembers is a throbbing, searing pain engulfing his entire right arm._

 _His first thought was maybe that he had just dislocated his shoulder or maybe broken a bone. Maybe both. He wasn't sure._

 _Despite the pain, he knew he still had families to save._

 _No one was coming to their aid._

 _He couldn't do it alone but he sure as hell would try._

 _Later that night, he'd find out that they had to amputate his right arm from a little above the bend of his elbow. He had gone too many hours without the proper medical attention that it was too late to save his limb._

 _It was a small price to pay for all the lives he helped saved._

 _Later that night, before he'd undergo the surgery he needed, he'd have to go and identify the bodies of his father and stepmother._

 _A cold chill traveled down his spine when he learned that they hadn't made it._

 _He remembers remaining composed all the way through as he helped the coroner with the paperwork._

 _He couldn't feel his right side but he had to continue and process this news._

 _His 'parents' were gone, just like that, in the blink of an eye._

 _His throat went dry as he tried asking if they had found a baby with them._

 _He wasn't religious in the least bit but for once he had prayed to all the deities in the world that Keith was not in the list of unidentified victims._

 _The doctors told him that there was no time to look into the matter._

 _Amputating his arm was their top priority before his body would start to infect itself even further._

 _He reluctantly agreed._

 _The next day, he was heavily medicated that it helped to tune out the mass hysteria in the hospital._

 _A few days later, things had calmed down a bit to the point where he could hear himself think._

 _A static stillness crept up in the halls of the hospital._

 _Many had lost their lives but he was one of the fortunate few._

 _"We know that you're still recovering post-op but I'd like you to come with me to the children's ward" he heard the doctor say._

 _His heart nearly sank at his words as he nodded and slowly got out of bed._

 _They had given him an extra nightgown so that he could fully cover himself as he took his IV drip and pushed the pole with him._

 _Inside the pediatrics section of the hospital, the doctor had guided him towards a room where they'd normally care for newborns._

 _Inside the room were seven babies._

 _Three had lost their mothers in the riots, three others waiting for their mothers to recover in the ICU, and then another baby that they couldn't identify._

 _He remembers his wobbly legs guiding him towards the baby's bed and seeing a patch of black hair._

 _It was Keith!_

 _He had a couple of days to convince himself that Keith hadn't survived._

 _"We found him this morning bundled in blankets, hidden inside the ditch of the local gardens, there was some water where police found him but thankfully he has no hypothermia, just malnourished. His mother most likely hid him well when the rioters paraded around town"_

 _He nodded, acknowledging every word._

 _He asked if he could hold him as they had him sit down in a brown leather recliner and gave him all the time he needed in private._

 _His hands trembled as he held Keith's tiny sleeping body._

 _He was warm._

 _Smaller and more fragile than he remembered._

 _He cried for the first time in years._

 _He cried for the first time since he was ten._

 _He realized then that something had to change in his life._

 _He was no longer living with his childish tantrums._

 _It was time to grow the hell up and get serious._

 _He had days to mull over the thought of being left alone._

 _When in reality, he still had Keith._

 _Someone who would set him straight._

 _Someone who depended on him for survival._

 _Someone who needed the father figure that he never had._

 _Because he had been too preoccupied in his self-destructive behavior, he never had that male figure he desperately wanted in his teenage years._

 _Now he could be someone's role model._

 _He could start anew and turn over a new leaf._

 _At age Nineteen…_

 _He had forgotten all about his birthday. It didn't help that it only really occurred every four years anyways._

 _He had stayed at the Altean hospital for well over a month._

 _Getting some of the therapy he'd require in order to get used to his new situation._

 _They had moved Keith into a crib in his room._

 _Altea had fallen._

 _In a blink of an eye, the entire island was no more._

 _They'd start to evacuate even more people away._

 _He had only stayed due to his lack of funds._

 _He only had a passport with him._

 _Once they fly him and his baby brother back to Garrison City, he'd have to figure out what to do as far as his childhood home and if he really had any rights to claim anything._

 _Within another two months, he was back home and had been busy with legal actions._

 _He found out that his father had left everything in his will in his name along with a letter._

 _The letter had everything that he had ever wanted to hear._

 _Heartfelt emotions were written into each and every word as he cried for the third time in his life._

 _The first - losing his mother._

 _The second - finding Keith alive._

 _The third - his father apologizing that he was never properly there for him._

 _He could've easily kept his childhood home and continue to raise his baby brother there but it was filled with mixed auras and memories._

 _He couldn't become a man that he needed to become if he stayed any longer in there._

 _So, he sold everything and got an apartment in the heart of the city instead, just a walk away from Garrison Central Park._

 _Once he had established himself, he focused on the big step - getting a prosthetic arm._

 _He couldn't function with only his left hand. He still couldn't train himself to fully switch over to relying solely on his left side._

 _Once he'd get his new prosthetic, he'd work towards gaining strength in his weak side and then try and see if he could possibly apply to becoming a senior officer at the Garrison Military Academy._

 _Even if he was messing around and doing no good out in the streets, he still had kept up with his studies without his father knowing._

 _Part of him had hoped that his father's spirit would be proud enough in knowing at least that much but he was so angry before that he didn't bother saying a word when he actually had the chance to talk to his father._

 _During the mornings, he'd attend school and during the nights he'd find somewhere to crash and hang out with his friends that were a bad influence on him._

 _He could be a punk all he wanted but he wasn't going to be stupid about it either._

 _He had been a criminal in name only, never actually arrested enough times to have a permanent record. The perks of his ex-leader having connections with law enforcers._

 _He was amongst the youngest to have attended the GMA, giving him a high-ranking authority at a young age which would help boost his application in attempting to become a senior instructor at the school._

 _He knew it'd be tough, with trying to balance raising a kid on his own and getting the therapy he needs for his arm._

 _But it wasn't anything that he couldn't handle._

 _He had survived the streets and a war zone. He could do this._

 _Just like the time when Keith had turned one - he faced the challenge of becoming a real father as Keith's first words were, "Da-Da"_

 _At age Twenty…_

 _He had decided to retire early._

 _He was content with his decision._

 _He loved working with his students and felt bad that he was leaving the academy so soon but he had spent fifteen years of his life there, since he was about eight._

 _He needed to focus on his own 'son' now and pursue other passions like tinkering with web designing and auto mechanics._

 _He was quite proud of his handiness and skills._

 _To celebrate he decided to take his two-year-old little brother to the zoo for the first time._

 _It was then that he had discovered that Keith had this quick affixation towards hippopotamuses._

 _He wasn't expecting that but wasn't one to judge._

 _He favored the wild cats himself._

 _Keith jumped up and down with his arms up, begging for him to hold him so that he could get a close look at the mammals. He playfully rolled his eyes and held him by the waist as Keith leaned over the railing to look at the hippos._

 _While doing so, a kind elderly lady had offered to take their photo as he was facing the camera and smiling as Keith was too enamored with the mammals to even look towards the camera._

 _He knew that when Keith was a bit older, he would appreciate the photo._

 _At age Twenty-three…_

 _Shiro had fallen in love for the first time in his life._

 _Waking up late, not having heard his alarm clock go off - he had to get Keith ready for his first day of kindergarten just to have his kid brother already dressed with mismatched shoes on and eating cereal as he was the only one running around trying to get dressed instead._

 _Hopping on one leg, Shiro tried to put his jeans on as he scurried around trying to find a clean shirt._

 _He couldn't remember if he had even done the laundry or not._

 _Despite the military training instilled in from a young age - sometimes he could be such a slob._

 _"Daddy, do I have to go?" he remembers Keith asking, sounding reluctant to go to school._

 _"What? Of course you do. I promise you, it'll be fun" Shiro reassured him while further messing up Keith's unruly hair._

 _He'd have to remind himself to set up a salon appointment for him._

 _Shiro chose a public school, not wanting Keith to grow up in the same strict and stale environment that he had._

 _His dad had sent him away to the Garrison Military Academy to 'build character' but it still didn't stop him from being a rebel._

 _He rushed that morning to drop him off, already late for his main job at his best friend's auto repair shop._

 _"It's a little chilly today so you'll have to wear a sweater" Shiro told Keith as he bundled him up in red and fixed his shoes to match before exiting their apartment._

 _Keith nodded, understanding, not really being one to complain about having to wear extra layers of clothing._

 _As the first set of school bells rang, just as fast as the strike of lighting and as loud as thunder, a young woman didn't see it coming when a tall man came bursting through the entrance with a small boy in a red sweater cradled in his arm like a football._

 _Shiro watched as fear painted her features as she got out of their tornado paved way as her body stayed still on the side of a wall near the lockers._

 _"Sorry!" he yelled back at her._

 _"Ah, shit, we're late Keith!" Shiro cursed as he could still be heard within the echoing halls._

 _"Go! Go! Go!" Keith chanted, as their voices left in a blur._

 _Later that day, as his luck would have it - he ran out of sugar when he needed it most for the homemade custard he was planning on making to surprise Keith with._

 _He knew that first days of school were scary for any kid and Keith loves custard pudding so he thought he could whip some right up with his limited knowledge of cooking and baking,_

 _Shiro didn't have enough time to run to the store and then get started on his pudding. The element of surprise would be entirely lost if Keith saw what he was planning on making._

 _Having no other choice, he decided to test out just exactly how nice his hall neighbor really was._

 _Knocking on the door, he waited for a response when he recognized the woman who answered as the one he had nearly ran over back at the elementary school!_

 _"Hey, Apartment 119, uhh… Neighbor? I know we haven't talked before but I live right across the hall in 120" he rambled as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck and held a measuring cup with the other. He was wearing a black muscle shirt with ripped navy blue jeans and black combat boots._

 _When she said nothing, he was about to tell her to forget about it and to have a nice day but his mouth had something else in mind as he spoke up._

 _"Is it alright if I bug you for a cup of sugar? Cliché, I know and I promise I'm not flirting here but I really do need sugar and I currently don't have enough time to run to the store" he finished explaining through the three inches of space where she could see him from her ajar door._

 _"Sure, one moment please" she politely told him as he patiently watched her close the door and heard the deadbolt and what sounded like four other locks come undone as she opened the door again._

 _"I'm Shiro by the way. It's nice to meet you" he greeted her with a kind toothy smile as he held his hand out for her to shake._

 _"Allura" she greeted back._

 _He entered her home and exchanged pleasantries with her._

 _She definitely kept a much cleaner place than he did._

 _Well, his place wasn't always messy but he had been so busy lately that he never put aside the time to clean._

 _Allura looked around her pantry to find the sugar, once she did, for a brief moment their hands touched, his left with her right. He noticed the diamond ring on her finger but said nothing as she showed him the exit._

 _He wanted to thank her for her kindness but didn't want to upset her significant other in any way. He was trying hard to stay clean from starting up fights._

 _Later he found out that she wasn't married nor dating anyone._

 _Something sparked in him, a feeling he hadn't felt in years._

 _She was gorgeous and ever mysterious._

 _Who knew that asking for a cup of sugar would lead to him chasing after her, slowly falling in love, wanting to improve himself as a human being._

 _Allura made him feel like nothing was impossible and everything was possible._

 _At the age of twenty-three, he shared his first true genuine kiss with someone as sweet and pure and completely out of his league as Allura._

 _Sometimes he wondered if he truly deserved any sense of happiness. He sincerely hoped that she hadn't regretted it because he sure didn't._

 _Sure he had to suppress other desires but his intentions were innocent. He honestly hadn't expected her to initiate the hot kiss they had shared a while back ago on the roof._

 _At the age of twenty-three, he was becoming the person that he wanted to be, not what anyone else expected him to be._

 _At the age of twenty-three, for once he was looking towards the future and what it might hold in store for him._

 _At the age of twenty-three, he wised up._

 _He wanted that future with Allura and her son Lance in it._

 _Wanted to take all of her burdens into him and make them disappear._

 _At the age of twenty-three, he learned what it truly meant to be selfless and to whole-heartedly love someone else._

"I love you, Shiro"

He watched as her lips curved and formed each syllable.

A determination burned in her eyes as she stared at him with those blue tidal pools that he always seemed to get lost in.

"I mean it this time" she clarified, the dim candle flames casting shadows on her features helping to hide the creeping blush from her reddening cheeks.

"I know you do" he faintly whispered back as he peppered soft kisses all over her tear stained face.

"I can't… I can't give you my body just yet… but my heart is yours" she trembled when she felt the vibration of his hums.

"I would never force you to, I'll wait until you tell me yourself that you're ready for _that"_ he gently made himself clear. He understood that Allura was terrified of a man touching her again without her consent.

He had seen first hand in his youth what that was like.

It was sickening and one thing he vowed he'd never do to any woman he was with.

"Can we get off this table so that you can properly kiss me? I'm scared that we'll fall off any second now" Allura worriedly admitted, "not that I didn't find this romantic! It really is!"

Shiro chuckled and nodded, "one second, please"

He got off the table with ease and then went to her side. She stopped him first to take off her heels, throwing them somewhere on the floor with a small thud.

She nodded when she was ready as he proceeded to scoop her up in his arms to carry her to his living room's couch.

Allura wrapped her arms around his neck as she closed the remaining gap between them in a lingering kiss.

He moaned into her mouth as he set her down on his black couch. Her back perfectly molding itself into the soft cushions as he used his arms to support most of his weight so that he wouldn't crush her.

Allura scrapped her nails on the short shaven hair at the base of his neck, begging to deepen the kiss. Shiro grunted and gave her what she wanted as he used his tongue to expertly take her breath away.

There were times when he felt ashamed of his sexual past but other times, like tonight, he felt blessed by it.

When she was ready, he knew that he could make her comfortable and able to trust him with her most intimate self.

Allura squeaked when she felt Shiro unconsciously roll his hips, his hands digging themselves into the sides of the cushion.

Shiro slowly pulled away to kiss at her jawline and trail kisses up to nibble on her ear, "we… we should stop here" his hot breath fanned against her ear, breathless and chest heaving.

Allura was shocked at her body's and vocal response, it wasn't unpleasant per say… just took her off guard.

The logical side of her brain told her to agree but the other wanted to test the limit of the extent of his will power.

"I'm fine, Shiro, I want to continue"

"Okay but no lower halves" he wanted to say that he wasn't sure if _he_ could continue but settled for this instead, reaffirming that his intentions were clear. They wouldn't dive head first into a sexual relationship without further strengthening their trust and bond.

"Agreed but first…" she said, gesturing for him to move off her as she placed her hands on his biceps, "let me get comfortable and have you lay down instead"

Shiro gulped and did as he was told.

He watched as she straddled him on the couch and slowly embraced him, aiming for his lips as he felt her lithe fingers travel from his shoulders down to work with the buttons on his slim button-down shirt, fumbling with the darn holes anytime he lifted his chin up to meet her hungry kisses.

He allowed her to have full control over their yet again intense make-out session as he kept his hands tame and right on her hips. Thumbs creating soothing circles over her clothed skin to distract his hands from wanting to slide up to her bare back.

A deep needy moan rattled out of him in unison with her own.

She was going to be the death of him.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Done! To be continued.

Longest chapter thus far! O:

1\. Shiro's been celibate for a few years and Allura is wearing no bra. Oh boy. I'll leave your minds in the gutter on that but they definitely don't sleep together.

2\. Yes, Shiro's ex-leader was indeed Sendak aka The Space Popsicle.

Next chap: Allura's birthday party and the babies up to no good!

Until next time!

You know the drill! Remember to R&R! Plz & Thankies! :]


	14. Milk Shots

AN: Thank you for being patient with me! We've had not only one but two new seasons of Voltron! AHH! I'm still not over Season 5 and I'm super excited for what's in store for us in June! Anyways, I had wanted to update by Christmas last year but life got in the way. Of course, I have never forgotten about this little fic of mine~ 2018 is my year of getting multi-chaptered fics done as an author.

WHERE'S MY SHALLURA FAM AT? *Waves white flag around*

Please don't tell me y'all have abandoned ship for Lotura… /Cry. D;

Notice: this is the ending to this fic! Thank you so, so, SO MUCH for showing my little story some love and for such lovely, heart-warming, and positive reviews! I did promise at least 15 chapters so next chapter will be the epilogue and whatever bonus material that didn't quite make it into the main story but I'll be reading over past reviews to look for suggestions. I'll credit the ideas given and if any reader does have any ideas/scenes/little tidbits of daily life that they'd like to see – then please, now is the chance to let me know!

Also, for those of you who have already watched/spoiled yourselves entirely with Season 5 – I wrote a Keith/Krolia-centric one-shot with a mix of S1/S5 lore. Please go and show _Mommy's Little Blade_ some love! I'd love to know what y'all think.

Okay, enough of my ramblings.

Happy Reading~ :D

Milk Shots

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

"You love me" Shiro sweetly whispers into her ear, arms circling her waist.

"I do" Allura giggles, slightly turning her cheek.

He lets out a hearty chuckle as his fingers begin to mercilessly tickle her sides.

Allura lets out a loud squeak as she tries to escape his hold while vibrating from the tingles of her sensitive skin. Ever since their confession, they spent almost every waking hour together. Making sure the boys had everything they needed while balancing their own busy schedules.

If you had told her how her life would turn out five years ago, she'd laugh while crying. Covering her tear-streaked face as she'd shake her head, having a hard time envisioning any optimistic outlook on things at such a young age and in her predicament.

If you had told him five years ago that things will get better, he'd snort and roll his eyes while crossing his arms. It was impossible to picture any easy-going life when he was placed in his situation at a young age.

Now older and wiser, they were both _free._

Shiro knew there wouldn't be anyone else for him just as she knew the same, trusting him with her entire being.

"Are you completely sure that you want to watch the kids while I'm gone?" Allura wipes the corner of her eyes from the small joyful tears.

Shiro nods, "I'm one-hundred percent sure, besides you deserve a girl's day out" he assures her as he unknots her pink waist apron for her.

Allura sighs contently, "okay, I'm only agreeing because I know that Romelle will force me out regardless" she tells him as she starts to clean the kitchen counter, having just finished a batch of cupcakes for the kids to enjoy later for dinner.

Shiro gently placed his hand over hers that was scrubbing away as he stopped her from finishing and shooed her away while smiling. He wanted her to be out of the apartment for a couple of hours while he and the boys set up for her birthday surprise later that night.

"Don't come back until the time we agreed on" he tells her while scrubbing away the counter and giving her a playful stern look.

Allura rolls her eyes and crosses her arms as she leans against the kitchen's entrance, "I'm almost suspicious"

He pauses and quirks an eyebrow, "have I ever given you a reason to worry before?"

"No?"

"Good then it's settled, go relax and have fun for a couple of hours"

"Alright, I'm practically gone" she raises her arms in surrender as she walked away to her bedroom.

Shiro shakes his head in good spirits as he finishes in the kitchen.

As Allura made her way to her room to shower and get ready for her outing, she stopped when she heard the giggles coming from Lance's room.

Slowly opening the ajar door further, she found both Lance and Keith sharing a pair of earbuds as they giggled at the tablet in Lance's hands as they laid on the bed.

Lance stopped mid-giggle and looked up, "Mommy!" he perks up as he throws his earbud down and hands the tablet to Keith.

"Hi, starshine" she greets him, "remember that Shiro will be taking care of you while Mommy goes out with Auntie Shay and Auntie Romelle"

Lance enthusiastically nods his head, "have fun!" he simply tells her and goes back to watching the tablet.

Allura raises a curious brow with a small pout on her lips, she was usually able to sneak a confession out of her son. Just like her, he too was sometimes easily persuaded into spilling on juicy info. It seemed like Shiro had paid off the kids well as she huffed and walked out.

As she left, Keith pressed the middle of the touch screen pausing the show they were watching and looked at Lance.

"Do you think she knows?" he asked his best friend.

Lance was determined in his response when he gave him a quick, "nope!"

"How do I look?" Allura asked Shiro who was sitting on the couch. She twirled around showing off her brown floral print empire waist dress with ruffled quarter sleeves, black tights, and brown leather ankle boots. She finished the look by wearing thin gold bangles on her left wrist, the Altean diamond ring on a rose gold band she never takes off and a simple gold heart choker necklace.

Shiro casually set the book he was reading down on the coffee table as he lifted his hand to his mouth and made a loud 'sexy' whistle noise with his fingers.

Allura rolled her eyes, placing a hand on her hip.

"No really, you're beautiful. Just don't forget a jacket" he reminded her of the chilly autumn weather outside as he stood up to escort her out.

"Maybe I should go ask Lance…"

"Allura, he'll tell you that his Mommy is very pretty now please, please go relax and have fun. I can keep the fort up for a few hours. I am a parent too, y'know" he gently guided her towards the door as she deeply sighed.

"Okay, Okay. I apologize, I'm just not used to going out by myself"

"You won't be alone, silly. Shay and Romelle will be keeping you company" he teasingly reminded her as he leaned in to give her a chaste kiss on her burgundy painted lips.

"You're lucky my lipstick is smudge proof" she giggled as she finally walked out with heavy lead feeling feet.

"I'm sure I'll enjoy that later on" he winked as he watched her flustered self leave.

As soon as he made sure she was fully gone, Shiro closed the door and immediately called his partner-in-crime Ulaz.

"She's gone" Shiro told him quickly just as he ended the call.

Ulaz looked at his phone and shoved it into his back pocket, already parked outside the apartment complex. In that very moment, he was damn proud of his window tinting skills on his 'incognito' van used for other less legal nightly activities as he could see Allura waving at Shay and getting into a car.

It was his queue to start unloading as he watched the car drive away and looked at his assistances, "ready for this, ladies?" he asked the sisters as they started to stack boxes before opening the van's sliding door.

"Of course, we're more than happy to lend a hand" Luxia smiled as she carried as much as she could in her arms and hopped off.

"Ooh, this surprise is gonna be so good!" Plaxum excitedly gushed as she carefully handled the dry-ice they brought.

"Rax, hurry the hell up and open the door for the ice cream sisters!" Ulaz joked as he began his own task of carrying props and bags of decorations.

Once they ascended the flights of stairs, Ulaz shoved his way into the opened apartment and dropped everything at his feet. "I can't believe this bloody apartment has a broken elevator" Ulaz grumbled as Shiro chuckled, "and how do you think we, the tenants who live here feel?"

"Hey Shiro! Where do you want these things?" the sisters asked as Shiro went to go help them make room in the kitchen.

Rax, the shyest of the bunch did as he was told and began to decorate. Part of him felt a bit bummed that he had lost Allura's heart to the likes of Shiro but appearance aside, he could see that he was a genuinely nice guy. Exactly what his dearest friend needed in her life.

"I appreciate your help, Rax" Shiro kindly said as he lightly squeezed his shoulder.

Rax had just recently met Shiro as he quietly nodded in acknowledgement. 'Damn this guy for being charismatic and likeable' he thought as he focused on his task.

"You owe me some of Allura's famously delicious baked goods" Ulaz rubbed his taut stomach as he lifted part of his shirt, "these abs depend on them"

Shiro rolled his eyes as he shoved a mini cupcake into Ulaz's mouth, "shut it" he told him as he pinched the bridge of his nose, "why am I stuck with such a drama queen?"

"Because you love me and I love your girl's baking" Ulaz poked Shiro's forehead as he got serious about helping to speed up the process.

"Riiight" Shiro rubbed at his throbbing forehead and went to go check up on the kids.

"Daddy, is it almost time?" Keith was the first to speak up as he set the tablet down on his lap.

"Hey!" Lance complained as Keith handed him the tablet instead.

"Not yet but you two should go and get ready when I come back" he chuckled as he ruffled Keith's wild hair.

"Okay!" the kids said in unison as he walked out.

While the apartment was getting a makeover for Allura's surprise birthday party – she found herself at a Olkarion/Naxzela vegan-vegetarian fusion restaurant.

"Umm… well this is different" Allura commented, not expecting to be treated to a healthy restaurant. She was all for healthy food options but she wasn't a saint every time either – she was like a little mouse attracted to the unhealthy midnight snack every now and then.

Shay laughed at her reaction, "c'mon, we gotta be hip and with the times with all these crazy food trends besides this was your cousin's idea"

Romelle's lips curled into a mischievous smirk, "it was either this or taking you to a strip club" she casually mentioned as she swirled her wine glass.

Allura nearly choked on her cup of water as she stared, wide-eyed at her closest cousin.

"You _wouldn't_ " she gave her a look. It was no secret amongst her very small friend group that she was wary of men. Now that she openly announced that she and Shiro are in a very serious relationship – it didn't mean she'd just flip her opinion on most men overnight like a switch.

"Oh, I _would_ " Romelle countered.

Allura shook her head and gave up, "I wonder what your _friend_ Sven would think"

After a few exchanges over the phone, Allura had found out more than enough about Romelle's current crush. All her affections were directed towards a humble guy named Sven who helped her more times than Allura could count on her hands. Her cousin is a spunky, sweet, hopeless romantic, and a total klutz when it came to men but she wasn't submissive either.

It also didn't help how awkward it was when Romelle had invited and brought up the idea of spending Christmas in the Puig Alps with her and her almost-but-not-quite-boyfriend Sven to her dearest cousin. It was then that Shiro had confessed that Sven was a distant relative after hearing Sven's side of the story about a mystery girl in his life during their rare email exchanges.

"He would be perfectly fine with what I choose to do while I'm visiting family" Romelle confidently told her as she looked at her white wine, "I have him wrapped around my little finger…" she added.

"Romelle…" Allura nearly groaned.

"What? We have an open relationship, no secrets, no lies, just pure honesty. Besides, we both highly care about our families so if I told him that I was doing it as a favor to you then there's that. Case closed"

"Case not closed. I'm not going to be used as an excuse for you and Shay to go get _handsy_ with oiled up men barely wearing anything in tacky dim lighting" she told them as she opted to take a firm sip of her red wine.

Both Shay and Romelle looked at each other with knowing looks and burst into a fit of laughter.

"What?" Allura cautiously asked.

"You seriously think we would be that evil?" Shay placed a hand over her heart, "I'm hurt"

"I know you Allura and I love you too much to place you in an uncomfortable setting. I know Sven would be okay with it but he'd also scold me for being mean as well" Romelle assured her.

Allura slumped down on her seat and tried to not get flustered, "I never know what to expect when you two are together" she told them honestly. Having her own fair share of horror stories of things that both ladies had pulled on her in the past. She was thankful for Lance being her escape card for a great majority of avoided tales whenever they wanted to mess with her alone.

"After this, we're going to a nice _family_ -friendly karaoke bar and then to the Balmera's Brew since my grandma wants to give you something" Shay told her the agenda as their food was placed on the table.

Allura quietly thanked the waiter and nodded, "sounds good" she simply said to Shay, deciding not to protest any present planned to be given to her later. She knew Shay's family would insist and insist until she'd furiously blush and ultimately give in.

Romelle bit her tongue to stop herself but then decided 'to hell with it' and spoke up, "the final pit stop of our night will be Club Kral Zera for some shots!"

"Romelle…" this time Allura did groan as she massaged her temples.

Romelle joyously laughed as the waiter refilled her wine and walked off as she toasted with Shay.

After two hours of singing their hearts out, the girls made their way to a closed Balmera's Brew as Shay twirled her store key around her index finger and opened up for them while turning on the lights.

"Anyone want coffee?" she offered as Romelle excitedly raised her hand as if she were in school, "oh, I do!" she skipped her way towards a bar stool, propping her elbows on the counter as Shay went around to the kitchen area.

"What about you, Allura?" Shay asked, putting on a green apron. Allura felt a small throb of a headache, "just an herbal hot tea, please" she ordered as she sat down next to her cousin.

"You got it! One triple quintessence brew for Romelle since I know you like your triple charged compared to Allura's usual and one Balmeran soothing crystal tea coming right up!" Shay announced as she went to the back to get the ingredients.

Romelle turned around to face her cousin as she became serious, "so how are things with you and Shiro?"

Allura quirked an eyebrow, her cousin was usually playfully teasing her and seeing what limits and how many buttons on her patience she could push but when Romelle became quieter and serious – Allura never knew what to expect.

They haven't really had the chance to speak recently with Romelle getting ready to travel around. Her first stop being to go visit her cousin Allura and her nephew she adores endlessly Lance.

Allura had briefly mentioned that she was now in a relationship which Romelle almost exploded from the shock and excitement but their conversation had been short, not allowing Romelle to get the full details on this new development in her cousin's life.

"Things are great… well more than great, they're wonderful and I'm constantly finding myself pinching my arms to make sure I'm not dreaming" she confessed with a shy blush, "he loves Lance and Lance loves him back. You know, my main concern is any man accepting _my_ son fully and not simply tolerating him for my sake"

Romelle agreed as she placed her hand over Allura's and lightly squeezed it, "Uncle Alfor would be so proud of you Allura just as I am. You've grown up to be a total badass. I know that I'm always moving around and not ready to settle down so it makes it impossible for me to be any closer than I am now but just know that you always have me. I'm always a phone call away and now I can take a breather, knowing you're being treated like the _queen_ that you are"

Allura wanted to roll her eyes at the comment. She wasn't a born royal, just a mere ambassador's daughter but the comment was sweet and sincere enough. "You're my best friend, you know that right?" Allura gave her a bright smile in gratitude for everything. Despite always messing with her whenever given the chance, she knew her cousin only wanted the best for her.

"Hey! I thought I was your best friend!" Shay called out, a dramatic frown apparent on her face.

"You both are!" Allura laughed as she gave Shay a peace symbol, "I come in peace!"

"One day I'll duel Shiro for your sole attention" Romelle teased as she leaned over and attacked Allura in a tight hug with a coral lipstick mark left on her cheek. "There, that's proof enough" she happily declared as Allura picked up a silver napkin dispenser and examined her reflection on the warbled mirror shine.

"Your lipstick sucks" Allura puckered her lips and tilted her cheek to look at the smudged lips temporarily tattooed onto her toffee skin.

"I live miles away from any civilization. I make my own lipstick so cut me some slack" she bopped her cousin's nose as Shay watched the two while preparing the drinks.

"You two can definitely never live together" Shay laughed as she handed the first drink to Allura.

"Oh gods, I can't even imagine that. Lance would be learning how to rebel at a young age and I'd never have a moment of peace ever again with you and Romelle running amuck" Allura teased as she blew at her hot tea.

"I don't think there would be room for three on Allura's bed" Romelle commented as Shay handed her, her iced coffee.

Allura nearly choked on the hot liquid as she knew the three meant herself, Shiro, and Romelle as her cousin had joked about stealing her away.

Later that evening, Shay's grandma came around the closed coffee shop and handed Allura a folder that looked aged.

"Hello dears" Shay's grandma greeted them as Allura escorted her to a cushioned booth and aided her in sitting down.

"I'll leave you two alone" Shay informed as she grabbed a curious Romelle by the forearm.

"Thank you" Shay's grandma thanked her granddaughter and Allura for the help.

"I'm sure you three have far more fun things planned than to spend time hanging around an empty store with an old lady" she joked as she handed the folder to Allura who was sitting across from her.

"Nonsense, I love having your company" Allura genuinely smiled at the elderly woman as she hesitated to open the contents of the folder just yet.

"You know Garrison City has been kind to us. Not just me and other Balmerans but to all walks of life. Forgive me for not bringing this up sooner" she began as Allura tilted her head, curious about what she was going on about. "Ambassador Alfor was a good friend of mine, back when my hometown was called X-95-Vox. It had no town, city, isle, village, republic, metropolitan or municipality attached to the name. It was just simply known as such but the land over time because too harsh for even its people to remain so your father declared that with his Altean resources he wanted to help the Balmerans and worked hard to make us Garrison citizens. He was loved in this city as well on your Isle" she fondly told Allura as she gestured for her to open the folder, "your father loved you very much Allura but he also predicted that something terrible would befall Altea so he begged me to hold onto a few keepsakes for you until I thought you were old enough to handle it because above all – he assured me that you'd always be safe even if he wasn't there to personally so to it that you were"

Allura softly gasped at the news as her nervous hands, shakily pulled out the yellowed paper and a few photos with an official Ambassador square ring and a pair of small triangular pink sapphire earrings fell to the table.

"Your father enclosed his ring and your mother's earrings along with a personal letter addressed to you and a few pictures from your childhood" Shay's grandma slid out of the booth, "I think you should look at the items in private" she said as she slowly made her way to where Shay and Romelle were seated.

Allura gulped as her eyes carefully read the letter trying to memorize each and every word, etching them into her heart as she desperately tried to picture her father's strong yet tender voice.

 _To my dearest daughter, Allura._

 _It gives my heart such sorrow knowing that I cannot physically be there to congratulate you on becoming an adult. If only… If only we lived in less political and war-torn times. I'm sure you've grown up to be a marvelous young woman and whenever you receive this letter, I'm sure you've become a beautiful mother as well. I would have loved to have met my grandchildren but know that wherever you and your children go – my heart goes with you._

 _Whenever you see the juniberries bloom – know that a piece of Altea is always with you and your mother as she too loved them. Please do not cry for my loss because I'll always be near. I'll understand if you ever grow angry towards me and my impulsive decision to keep you safe but you have always been my top priority. I hope that Honerva was able to see you to safety and that the world hasn't been too cruel to you. I know I have sheltered you and I am sorry for that but I also know that you are your mother's daughter – you'll be just fine._

 _I am writing this in haste as I cannot be guaranteed even a moment of solitude with this looming peace treaty over my head. I pray that you have found your way to the Balmerans of Garrison City as they have been a great ally to me for decades._

 _I am leaving my ring and your mother's favorite earrings that I gave to her on our wedding night. I know you will take care of and cherish these items and if you have a son, I would like for you to give him the ring when he is older. I want my future grandson to know that he has my love but I do hope siblings do not fight if you have more than one. I am only joking, I know you'll be fair when the time comes._

 _With all my love, eternally yours, Alfor – your father._

"H-How… co-could… I ever b-b-be a-angry wi-with you?" she stuttered as her vision became blurry. A few tears stained the paper as Allura set it back into the folder. She shook her head, "you've always been quick to assume the worse and make sure I was always out of harm's way" she laughed as the hot tears cascaded down.

Allura knew the peace treaty had been a tense event that was supposed to end without bloodshed. She knew her father well enough where he'd already have an exit route planned. She understood this and not once did she go a single day without thanking him for everything he did for her that day and the wise teachings he left with her. She crossed her arms on the table and hid her face as she didn't care how vulnerable she looked in that moment as she freely cried.

Romelle frowned, wanting to go comfort her but knew that there would be time for that later.

"I feel horrible… I mean, how many times can she hear condolences. What else is there to say?" Romelle sighed as she swirled her second cup of iced coffee around.

"Just lots of really tight hugs and letting her know she's not alone but for now, this is something she needs to come to terms with" Shay tried to hide her small scowl, she hated having to see her friend open up old wounds.

"This is what she needed" the elderly woman was sure of it as she sipped on her cup of hot tea.

Allura calmed down after twenty minutes alone, she was finally able to look over the few family photos included. Most had been from when she was much younger traveling with her father or on the Isle of Altea but her most treasured photo she just received was of her parents together with her when she was about Lance's age around five.

After she fondly went over the photos, she set them aside to fully inspect the ring and earrings. She tried on the ring knowing it would be too big for her finger but it brought a sense of comfort to her as she placed it back in the folder along with the earrings, deciding to wear them for a later occasion.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Romelle was the first to ask once Allura made her way towards them.

A somber smile was evident on her teary features as she nodded, "I'm better. After all these years, my father is still full of surprises" she mused as she looked over to Shay's grandma and hugged her.

"Thank you for keeping these items safe and for allowing me to be able to maintain even more precious memories of my childhood" she told the woman as the elder patted her back in comfort.

After an emotional gift, Allura didn't think she could be even more surprised than she already was from her girl's day out. Truth be told, she wasn't big on celebrating her birthday and didn't see this little outing as anything special other than getting to spend time with her friend and cousin she doesn't often get to see.

"Thank you for the fun night but I miss my son terribly" Allura confessed as she was itching to finally get into her apartment and pray that she wasn't coming home to a full mess. She trusted Shiro with her son and had no problem with that but sometimes boys could be boys and that worried her.

To her surprise, the lights were off when she and the girls walked in. Shay bit her lip, trying to suppress the urge to yell out a 'Happy Birthday' as Romelle tightly held onto her arm to stop herself as well. They had to support each other for a few more seconds as Allura called out for the boys and flipped the hallway switch.

"SURPRISE!" chorus of voices startled her as she slightly jumped back.

"What's all this?" Allura placed a hand over her heart to calm her quickened heart rate.

"A birthday party for someone very special to us all" Shiro announced as he carefully walked out of the kitchen holding a three-layered ice cream cake.

"We're not amazing bakers as you are but we hope you like it!" Plaxum chimed in as she hugged Allura.

"You can never go wrong with ice cream" Luxia joked as she too gave Allura a hug.

Allura was still in disbelief over the surprise party, as the party decoration was a mix of birthday themed and Halloween themed for the upcoming autumn holiday.

The entire apartment smelled like warm spices and a mix of pumpkin and apple.

"We're glad that you didn't suspect a single thing as we kept you out for as long as possible as per Shiro's instructions" Shay joked as she gestured for Hunk to walk over.

"Hey, Birthday Girl! Don't worry, I totally catered this little shindig minus the cake – that was all the ice cream sisters over there" Hunk greeted with a big hug as Allura thanked him and excused herself to go talk to Shiro after a few moments of pleasantries.

"Lance?" she asked Shiro who leaned down for a peck on the cheek.

"He's with Keith's uncles at the dining room table" he told her as he went to go put the cake back in the freezer.

Allura walked over to find the boys along with Shay's twins sitting with Shiro's longtime friends that were exchanging silly stories amongst each other for the kids' amusement.

"Remember when we'd stumble our way to Hunk's food truck at three a.m. after a night of getting wasted?" Ulaz fondly recalled with a playful grin on his lips.

"Oh yeah" Antok spoke up, silently toasting his fruit punch in the air.

"Back when Shiro could drink us all under the table" Kolivan crossed his arms in a small bitter grumble.

"Ha, nothing made Sendak get all riled up as much as losing to the _Champion_ " Thace brought up the dreaded nickname again as Shiro took a seat with the guys and flicked Thace on the shoulder.

"I _thought_ this was supposed to be a kid-friendly conversation" Shiro lectured as Keith tugged on his shirt, "Daddy, what does wasted mean?" his curiosity was piqued with the topic he didn't quite understand.

"Yes, Shiro, what does it mean to get wasted?" Allura asked as well with crossed arms pressed against the chair Lance was sitting on.

The guys snickered as they placed Shiro in hot water.

"Uhh…" he started, unsure of how to explain it, "it's when you're really craving Baskin' Baku" he finished as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Oh! Oh! Then I wanna get wasted every single night!" Keith's eyes shined, being a lover of junk food, which was entirely Shiro's fault.

"I wanna get blueberry cheesecake and sharks sprinkles wasted!" Lance declared, hitting his little palms repeatedly on the table for attention.

"Can we get wasted for our Daddy's food instead?" Pidge thoughtfully asked as Matt vigorously nodded his head in agreement.

"Can I get taffy wasted then?" Ulaz laughed as he playfully tugged on Shiro's shirt in the same manner as Keith had earning him a punch on the arm.

"That's a liqueur flavor" Thace piped up as Antok high-fived Ulaz.

Kolivan ignored them as he gave Allura a quick apologetic look.

"As the eldest of this trio of morons excluding myself and Shiro, you have my sympathy" he told her as Allura shrugged her shoulders, "guess we're stuck with them" she quipped as she walked away into the kitchen leaving Shiro unsure of whether he made her feel bothered or not on behalf of his immature friends.

"Should I go after her?" he mouthed, pointing towards Allura's disappearing figure while looking at Kolivan for advice.

Kolivan simply waved him away as Shiro sprinted towards the small kitchen area.

"Sorry my friends are a bad influence on this bright generation. I'll kick them out if that's what you want" he semi-seriously joked as he watched Allura take out the cake from the freezer.

"It's fine, I'm not mad nor bothered by them. I'm assuming they all chipped in to help you set this up so for that, I'm grateful" she reassured him with a winning smile as she took out a knife, ready to cut into the cake until Shiro stopped her.

"Wait! Don't you want us to sing to you?"

"I'd rather not… truth be told, I haven't thought much about my birthday since Lance was born. It'll just feel awkward"

"Then can I at least sing it to you in your ear?" he suggested as he got closer to her.

Allura deeply blushed as she bit her bottom lip and avoided his enchanting gaze. "If you must" she gave him permission as she felt him take the knife away from her hold and wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her in closer to rest against his chest and began to sing to her.

Luckily, they were the only two in the kitchen otherwise she would've died from others seeing an innocently intimate moment between the two. Especially Romelle who would be bouncing off the ways and then begging for any juicy gossip.

Shiro finished the birthday song and helped her to cut the cake into slices for everyone to enjoy.

It was only when they gave the kids and the guys their shares that Shiro and Allura both realized they made a grave mistake.

Ulaz had snuck in a tall bottle of chocolate milk liqueur and a couple of shot glasses. He and Thace were already getting their own drinking party started together while Antok took his time and nursed his own shot glass. Kolivan pinched the bridge of his nose with one hand and with the other, he felt ashamed of himself as he gestured for a shot glass to be poured.

"You're all horrible people, especially Ulaz" Shiro commented with narrowed eyes at the shot glasses. Even the kids had their own except theirs were filled with regular milk.

"Please tell me you did not just give a bunch of five-year-old's alcohol" Allura warily asked with a sharp defensive tone in her voice as she watched the giggling children play with the small glasses filled with milk.

"I can assure you that it's not, I would never allow it" Kolivan reassured her as he downed his own shot and refused another, promising both worried parents that the kids were fine under his watch.

"Want to stay and watch over them instead?" Shiro offered, knowing that despite the party being for her – Allura's top priority would always be her son. The same went for himself as he too sometimes, admittedly didn't fully trust leaving his kid brother alone with his friends that all held some degree of permanent criminal records.

Allura squeezed his shoulder in a silent 'thank you' at his offer and shook her head, "I'll allow it for today only" she gave the table a final glance and then went to distribute the rest of the cake to the guests.

Shiro derailed from her side and went to go talk to Hunk while Allura found herself with Rax who was shyly sitting in the corner of the room just minding his own business.

"I heard from Shiro that you were a great help in setting this all up" she warmly said as she motioned around their surroundings at all the festive decors. She sat next to him and placed a hand over his, "I can always count on you, Rax" she leaned against his side, briefly closing her eyes to savor the moment.

Rax's heart nearly leapt out his chest as he forced a gulp and spoke up with a shaky voice, "S-Sure, wh-what are fri-fri-friends for, right?" he let out, part of him dying from the truth of his words. He slightly turned his head, feeling strands of soft hair on his chin and cheek from the top of her head.

He inhaled Allura's sweet scent as he relaxed his tense muscles and leaned into her as he chuckled to himself. "I'm happy for you" he genuinely and ever so softly whispered for only her to hear. He knew he could never be what Allura needed in her life but he'd always gladly be her friend and, in some way, a brother figure for the young woman who, up until that point, only had her son in this world.

"This is nice" she began as she opened her eyes and readjusted herself next to him, "we should hang out more often"

"If grandma ever lets me have a free moment from making deliveries then sure" he chuckled as he bit his lip and surprised her by wrapping an arm around her and squeezing her. "Let's ditch Shay and go to the pier without her! Of course, Shiro and the boys are invited" Rax gave her a toothy grin as she laughed and agreed, "I'd love that!"

"Shots! Shots! Shots!" Allura could hear loud boisterous chants coming from the dining room table as she raised a suspicious brow and was shooed away by Rax who knew she wanted to see what all the commotion was about.

"You owe me another slice of cake for ditching me so soon" he teased as she playfully blew at her long silvery hair, "deal" she left him with a simple reply as she went over to the crowded table finding that Shiro and Ulaz were having a shots contest with the chocolate milk liqueur.

"Do I even want to know?" she leaned in to ask Shay.

Romelle, Plaxum, Thace, and Antok were pumping balled up fists in the air as they cheered for Ulaz.

Hunk, Kolivan, Luxia and Shay rooted for Shiro while cupping their palms around their mouths.

"Ulaz wouldn't shut up about going on and on about the past and when the others started to mess with Shiro by calling him _Champion_ , he lost it and accepted a challenge" Shay filled in Allura on what was currently going on as she shrugged her shoulders as if saying, _'men.'_

Allura deeply sighed as she watched the entire thing unfold before her very eyes. The kids had lost interest and went to go play in Lance's room. At least her mind was set at ease without the kids being there to see two grown men with dribbling alcoholic chocolate milk spilling out of their mouths as they downed as many shots as fast as possible.

"I told you I hate that stupid nickname" Shiro warned Ulaz as he downed his tenth shot. There were many things he wasn't proud of from his past and _Champion_ had been one of the bigger ones. The nickname came with connotations from a brutal past he no longer associated himself with from his time out on the streets being an idiot.

"Then get ready to love it once I drink you under the table!" Ulaz boldly declared, barely on his eighth shot.

Shiro could mockingly laugh and say something witty but seeing his friend's ego worn loud and proud on his sleeve made him wise up and remain silent as he focused on the weak liqueur. If he was being honest, this was nothing compared to his heavy and experimental drinking from a distant past. The guys including Ulaz knew this but when ego had a say in things – known facts were thrown out the window.

"Getting pretty ballsy there, Ulaz" Thace smacked Ulaz's back causing him to sputter on his shot, "Oye! Shut it!" he yelled as he forced the ninth down.

Shiro looked around his surrounding, making sure that the kids weren't present and flipped Ulaz off as he downed his twelfth shot and then stood up, causing the chair to fall back as he decided to take the remaining bottle and chugged it until almost barely a single drop was left.

"Shiro wins by default!" Kolivan declared as he grabbed Shiro's free arm and raised his hand.

"Suck it, _bitch!_ " Shiro triumphantly yelled, thrusting his hips once and set the bottle firmly down on the table as he accepted his victory with the grace of a fraternity brother.

"Good one, Shiro!" Hunk laughed as the rest of the group surrounded him.

Everyone was too focused on Shiro's win that they weren't paying attention to the birthday girl Allura who took out her phone and sent a quick text as she quietly left the apartment.

 **Congratulations are in order. Meet me on the roof.**

She didn't even have to wait fifteen minutes in the chilly fall weather as Shiro walked perfectly fine towards the roof.

"I was expecting you to stumble and trip" she honestly confessed as he snorted, "chocolate milk with a small percentage of alcohol won't intoxicate me to the point of being a limp noodle"

She hummed and wrapped her arms around herself as she looked at the cityscape with its bustling noise and twinkling lights.

"I'm sorry that you had to see that side of me… I promise you that I don't often drink"

"Shiro it's fine, I'm not bothered. It is a party after all, I should be the one apologizing for acting terse and not to mention tense… now that I'm an adult, I don't know how to even function at the thought of having a birthday party"

Shiro walked over to her and wrapped his arms protectively around her to shield her from the cold.

"You're loved Allura" he whispered as he gently swayed her, "by your old and new friends, your son, and from me" he kissed her temple as she took in his every word into very being. The concept of being wanted and most of all loved had been two very hard ideas for her to grasp with the lingering thoughts about Lotor and the war that happened so long ago.

"You're far too sweet to me"

"You deserve it"

"So do you" she reminded him, knowing his hardships.

"We can focus on me later but for today, let me spoil you"

"What more could you gift me with? A surprise birthday party, our kids enjoying themselves, and seeing Ulaz pass out on the table have all been highlights of my day"

Shiro laughed at the last comment as he unwrapped his arms and lightly turned her over to face him.

"Would I be rushing things if I said that I want to spend the rest of my life with you?"

"A bit, yes"

"Okay, okay, we can discuss future plans at a later date" he dramatically sighed as his amused smile reached the corner of his eyes, "so, how about I just give you this instead?" he offered as he pulled out a key with a pink puffball keychain attached to it.

Allura's blue shimmering eyes widened as he placed the key in her opened palms.

"A key to my apartment. I know you're not the biggest fan of carpet and are totally jealous of my wood flooring. So, I want you to know that you and Lance are always more than welcomed to come spend the night at my place and…" he hesitated with a blush creeping on his cheeks, "maybe sometime in the future, you can move in with me altogether. We'll rebuild and expand the Castle"

Allura curled her hand closed on the key as her free hand covered her mouth from the gasp that escaped her lips.

She was immobilized by the surprise from the gift as Shiro cupped her face in his palms and touched foreheads with her. "Please say yes or anything really…" he pleaded as his breath fanned over her, smelling like spicy chocolate.

"Do you really need to ask?" she cringed at her own words, hating that here he was being romantic but she was blunt with her own reply.

Shiro trailed butterfly kisses from her temples and eyelids, stopping at the tip of her cold nose. She could feel the rumble of his throat as he chuckled, "I told you I wouldn't do anything without your consent"

And he never did.

Not when their make-outs got too passionate.

Not when he intended to take the boys out just so that she could get cake orders done in peace.

Not when he wanted to buy her things for her and her son.

He always asked before doing anything to make sure she felt comfortable.

"Will you pinch me? Tell me that I'm not dreaming?" she bit her lip, not wanting to become emotional as he shook his head and quietly took hold of her hand as he kissed her inner palm, "I'm real" he promised like he always did whenever she was in disbelief with his genuine love for her.

Allura could feel her palm tingling from his soft kiss as she blinked back a few tears, "thank you, Shiro" she basked in his affection as she slipped the key in-between her breasts as her tights had no pockets.

Shiro chuckled but was quickly silenced when she kissed him. He moaned as he tried to keep up with her quickening pace going back to caressing her cheeks as he found his pace and moved in sync with her.

It was her way of agreeing to the gift.

"You taste like chocolate milk with a kick to it" she laughed as they broke apart.

"B-B-Blame Ulaz" he panted, biting his swollen lips.

"Do you think anyone noticed that we left the party?" she shyly asked, sincerely hoping that no one had assumed the worst of them. Sure, they were a couple but they had limits. They wouldn't just run off to get all handsy with each other knowing that they left an apartment full of people and their kids behind.

Romelle was sure to assume something was going on as she loved to tease her cousin but the others? Maybe Ulaz and Thace but… she shook her head as she pretended that the crisp air was getting to be too much for her to handle.

"Allura, breathe" Shiro already knew her too well to know how she was internally freaking out with the different scenarios floating around in her head. "Shay, Hunk, and Kolivan are the responsible trio. I'm sure they don't mind that we stepped out for a bit… can we just enjoy the silence for a bit?"

"You're right, sorry, I need to work on not always being on top of everything" she was honest and not ashamed to admit how much of busy-body she could be. Having to mature at a young age and not really getting to be a real teenager had a way of influencing her mindset.

"Well I wouldn't oppose if you ever wanted to top me…" he mumbled with a shake of his head.

If Allura had a drink in her hand, she'd probably drop it and choke on air. Sexual innuendos weren't really their thing as they rarely joked around those topics but she supposed that was one wonder of alcohol.

"Maybe that'll be your Christmas present, _Mr. Apartment 120_ " Allura hummed in thought as she swayed her hips as she walked towards the roof's entrance to head back down to the party.

Shiro was left speechless for a moment as he clasped his hands together in a prayer and aligned his index fingers to the tip of his nose as he exhaled. "This woman is going to be the death of me" he muttered to himself as a sly smirk crept on his lips.

He was definitely going to get _Ms. Apartment 119_ back for that lingering suggestive comment.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Done! To be continued.

All good stories must come to an end and on a trolling note no less. /Cries while trolololing.

Of course, we still have one final chapter to go and that will be posted very soon! I know I have made Romelle a bit ooc and very energetic but that's how I pictured her for this story because in our canon modern Voltron, Princess Allura – I see a mix of 80's Allura and Romelle in her so having both be carbon copies of one another would be boring in this fic so I switched up the formula a bit.

I love the Blade of Marmora so I'll definitely write something with them again (with my take on their personalities) sometime in the near future.

Umm… I guess that's all I really have to say. Both Allura and Shiro closed old wounds, have grown wise with time and life, and found love along the way.

Yes, the milk shots/getting wasted idea came from the movie Grown Ups. I'm a huge Adam Sandler movie fan and that quote never fails to amuse me. Originally, I was going to have the kids downing shots of regular milk in shot glasses but then I thought, "nah, let the adults have their fun."

So… uhh… yeah, go check out my one-shot _Mommy's Little Blade_!

Until next time!

Christmas time in the Puig Alps with Sven and Romelle!


	15. Epilogue & Bonus

AN: Ahh! Thank you so much for sticking until the end and seeing this little story of mine come to a complete end! It's always hard to say goodbye to stories but then again, after one, comes another!

I honestly don't know when I'll get started on other Voltron/Shallura ideas I have in mind since I've fallen into My Hero Academia hell. Damn you, shonen series!

Anyways, I honestly didn't think I'd get reviews on Chapter 14 but I'm so happy to see that there was still interest here and it brings me great joy just knowing that others on the world wide web have enjoyed this emotional rollercoaster of a ride! FanFics really do bring us all together.

Note: I went over past reviews and picked out a couple of suggestions that are included in this chapter as bonus content – they're from different time frames throughout the story.

Shout out to **FadhiliTheOne** and **Guest(s)** reviews for the bonus ideas!

Enjoy! And like always…

Happy reading~ :D

Epilogue & Bonus

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Allura had promised Romelle that she would find the time to go and spend the holidays with her in the Puig Alps but it wasn't until the following year that she finally committed to her promise and found the time to.

A year had past and already so many things in her life had changed.

The biggest after throwing Lance a massive sixth birthday party with a bouncy house and entirely themed after Voltron was that Apartment 119 and 120 were now vacant.

Allura had surprised Shiro with the idea of purchasing a home together. She knew that he wanted them to live together and she could splurge a little with her saved up funds left as a gift from her late father.

They only had three months at their new home but in her heart, she knew it was the right choice to make as they all found their rhythm. Lance and Keith had their own bedrooms while Shiro and Allura had a huge master bedroom. The home was in the suburbs, away from the hustle and bustle but not terribly too far away from downtown. It was the perfect neighborhood to raise their kids and she couldn't have loved it any more.

"Ahh! You're here! You're here!" Romelle excitedly squealed as she tightly embraced Allura and ushered them all into her cabin home. "Hey, Shiro!" she greeted with a quick hug and then moved to the boys.

"Oh my, where's my baby Lance? And Keith? I see big boys now!" she dropped to the floor of the entrance. Shiro closed the door to escape the mild snow storm outside as Romelle gushed as she attacked the kids' faces with kisses.

"We're six now, Auntie Romelle!" Lance giggled, stopping her sweet assault as he kissed her cheek.

Keith blushed, not knowing what to do as he nodded his head and ran to hide at Shiro's side who was helping Allura remove her puffy pink jacket.

"I'm so glad you guys made it in time for dinner. Sven just finished making his infamous baked lamb head, blood pudding, roasted garlic potatoes, and purple berry sauce!"

Allura and Shiro gave each other a silent all-knowing look as they tried to smile and appear just as excited as Romelle.

Shiro knew Sven's cooking and had made a chart listing all the possible foods that would be put on the menu and what to do to avoid _all_ of them.

"Oohhh… yay" Allura flatly cheered as she nearly gagged at the steam coming off an entire lamb's head that Sven was holding in a tray. She was no stranger to cultural delicacies as she had attended countless of political and fundraising dinners in her youth but there were just some things that she vowed to never eat again.

"Yoo-hoo, happy hoolidays!" Sven greeted as he set the lamb down, "isn't it a beaut?"

"It's amazing, my big strong mountain man" Romelle cooed as she wrapped an arm around his and snuggled closer to his side. "I'm glad I got oot da alps hoospital in time to cook" he said with a thick accent as he shuffled back into the kitchen with Romelle glued to his side.

"Should we ask what happened?" Allura whispered to Shiro, not knowing whether to be concerned or play it off as no big deal.

Shiro shook his head letting her know it was fine not to, "it's better not to ask with Sven, he's always getting injured and sometimes in ways that leave you wondering _how_ "

She nodded as they patiently waited for the couple as Keith and Lance were the first to choose where they'd like to sit down.

"Romelle, please tell me that berry sauce is made with Altean berries" she whispered to her cousin once she returned from the hot kitchen.

Romelle heartily laughed with her head tilted back, palms resting on her chest as she had to steady herself on a dining room chair knowing that Allura was iffy on the Galran variant.

"Yes, dearest cousin. I made sure to check while Sven was cooking"

Allura sighed a breath of relief as the adults sat down at the table.

Shiro weaved his fingers with Allura's under the table as he leaned into her side and brushed his lips against her hair to whisper in her ear, "please tell me we can order a pizza after this nightmare dinner" he begged with urgency laced in his tone.

Allura bit her inner cheek hard to prevent herself from giggling as she squeezed his hand, "behave" she shushed his soft groaning with a pat to his hand as she thanked Romelle and Sven for the lovely meal and for inviting them over to spend the holidays and new year with them.

She served her boys small portions of the food and drowned it all in purple berry sauce to mask the taste knowing already that two six-year-olds would not be the biggest fans of a mature taste palate.

"You're lucky I love you" Shiro whispered as he thanked Allura for his plate.

Allura winked at him, "I know"

"Cousin, you should serve yourself more than that! Sven made enough to last _days_ "

' _Oh gods'_ Allura thought as she plastered on a cheery smile and gave Romelle a white lie saying that she had ate prior to their trip.

"I love you, my Starshine" Allura kissed Lance's cheek, "and I love you, Sunshine" she softly told Keith as she kissed the top of his head. Both boys had to share a bed as she tucked them in with Shiro patiently waiting for her to finish as he leaned against the doorframe.

"You boys better not stay up talking. Tomorrow we're going to go play in the snow" Shiro sternly lectured with a beaming smile.

"Yes, Daddy!" they said in unison.

Shiro offered Allura his hand as she gently held his hand and walked out of the guest bedroom. "Romelle and Sven went to bed already so now we can order that pizza"

"Slow down, I have a better idea" Allura lead him into the kitchen where she quietly took out a pot trying not to make too much noise and then rummaged through the fridge.

She cringed at the sight of seeing half a lamb's head with a baked eyed still intact. Quickly she took out the milk and shut the fridge's door to avoid having any weird dreams about tonight's dinner haunting her.

Next, she rummaged through the cabinets and pantry as quietly as she could and had a small 'ah-ha!' moment when she found the small sandwich bag filled with a deep rich lavender powder and another with a bark of white chocolate.

"What are you making?" Shiro asked with an amused smile on his lips. He opted to stay out of her way as he watched from a corner of the kitchen.

"An Altean holiday tradition" she simply left it out that, leaving him to wonder what that meant as she got to work and started to hum a song that her father would sing to her during a cold, chilly, snowy night.

The sweet scent wafting throughout the kitchen, the warmth of her cooking and the lit fireplace, and her old Altean songs = these small moments of nostalgia in the present made her feel all tingly and at peace.

Everything in her life felt complete.

Allura wanted to cry because although she knew this was her life now, she was still reeling and taking it all in. She was full of love and happiness and now openly willing to share more of her Altean traditions.

She steamed the milk, stirred in the powder, added a few secret ingredients and stirred her wooden spoon a few minutes before taking a taste. She briefly closed her eyes and shivered at the taste – it was just as she had remembered it from so long ago.

Turning off the stove, she went and served two steaming mugs and put sugar cookies on a plate being thankful that her motherly instinct kicked in and reminded her to bring her own snacks in case the boys got fussy at any given moment with new foreign foods.

At some point, Shiro had left her side to go sit by the chimney that had a bright fire burning, filling the room with a smoky and spicy scent from Romelle's cinnamon incents in the living room.

"A purple berry white hot chocolate and my peppermint sugar cookies for one picky eater" she teased as she handed Shiro his mug and carefully sat down next to him with her own.

Shiro chuckled a thanks as he slowly blew and took a sip, "whoa, this is amazing"

Allura shrugged nonchalantly, "you can take the girl out of the Isle but never the Isle from the girl" she fondly said, taking a long sip of her own as the warmth of the aromatic drink made her feel fuzzy and warm all over.

"I'd love to taste test more for you in the future" he widely grinned, loving that she was now freely able to talk to him more about her home and generally anything on her mind.

"I'm sure you would" she laughed as she almost finished half of her mug with barely a nibble to her own cookie.

"Does that mean that someday I can proudly say that my _wife_ loves to cook for me? Of course, I'll cook too. We're equals in our gender roles!"

Allura playfully rolled her eyes while her palms cupped her drink. She knew him; knew that he would never make her feel submissive and less than him. Just as much as she knew that he was serious about marrying her someday.

She hummed to keep him waiting as she licked her lips from the foam and puckered her lips, "as long as I can say that my _husband_ tends to all the laundry and the dishes"

He tried to contain the fluttering feeling tightly inside his chest at bay as he vigorously nodded his head in agreement. "Nonconforming lifestyle for the win!" he joked.

"We do live in the modern era, not the stone age" she joked back.

After a few scattered laughs, Allura tucked in her legs to herself as she had finished her drink and leaned closer into Shiro who was still nursing a bit of his drink having finished his cookie first. He welcomed her affection as she rested her head against his bicep and contently sighed, watching the fire spark and crackle.

Pleasant silence fell over them for a few minutes as Shiro finished his own treat and set his mug down on the coffee table. He let a small yawn escape his lips.

"Tired?"

"A bit, yeah. You?"

"Same"

"Wanna go to bed?"

"Hmm… perhaps in a few. I'm just thinking…"

Shiro quirked a brow, "care to elaborate?"

Allura tilted her head up to look at him, "lately I've been feeling like something's missing"

"In what way?" he grew a bit nervous at her vagueness, hoping that it wasn't anything on his part. He knew her, knew her like the back of his hand. She wasn't the clingy, jealous, or overly demanding type. Allura was simple to please, enjoying the little things in life = humble.

She avoided his gaze, trying to hide the glint of mischief in her tidal pool eyes. "You know what would make me happy?"

Hard steel swirled with confusion as he cautiously asked, "what?"

"A daughter" she simply said, thoughtfully.

A cold chill ran down his spine, "a d-d-daughter?" he nearly choked on air, grateful that he wasn't drinking anything in that moment.

She softly hummed in confirmation, peeling herself from his side as she repositioned herself to straddle him. Shiro watched as she did this with wide eyes, eyes flickering back and forth from her face to watching her wrap her arms around his neck.

"Of course, we'd need to have some practice first" she leaned in to whisper in his ear, fanning her hot breath against his earlobe, "I want a big family with you, Takashi"

Shiro bit back his groan at hearing her say his full name as he kept his hands still on her hips, "are you sure?" he wanted to make sure she was being serious and not messing around. He knew she wouldn't joke lightly about something like this but it was so unexpected that he didn't know how to react. Sure, he teased her and suggestively pushed her with the idea of getting married someday but they never delved into the topic of having kids together in the future, let alone finally being intimate.

Allura cupped his cheeks and made him look at her, "I am, one-hundred percent sure. I've been thinking about it for months now. I'm ready to experience what more life has to offer. I want my new firsts to be with you, Shiro"

"So, are you… ummm... suggesting we get freaky for the first time while… uhh… visiting relatives?"

Allura giggled, shaking her head, "no, silly, of course not – that'd just be awkward" she almost cringed but nonetheless amused by his sudden meek behavior.

He almost pouted if it weren't for his relieved logical side kicking in, "so then when?"

"Maybe in the new year? When the boys are in school or we send them off to Shay's for a long weekend"

He nodded, taking in her words, "that sounds reasonable" he stiffly replied, wanting to pinch himself for acting like such a robot.

"But… then again…" she drawled, focused on his eyes.

He had her attention as he gulped, "hm?"

"I want to be boring and traditional"

"Meaning?" he huffed, feeling a bit annoyed with her teasing.

"We'd have to get married first before having kids"

His eyes shifted to her, watching her lips curl into a bright smile.

"Is this your way of accepting my proposal?"

"Well it would've been nice if it was cheesy and oozing in romance but I'm fine with this. I don't need a ring to remind me that I'm yours"

"Oh no, no, not so fast" he shook his head, "I'll get you a ring and properly propose when you least expect it"

Allura giggled and huffed with a small shrug of her shoulders, "if you insist"

"Damn right, I do!" he hotly said as he slid his fingers up her sides and began tickling her as he kissed her lips, pouring all his love and excitement into the tender moment as she opened her mouth in-between heated kisses and openly laughed.

All attempts to remain quiet were thrown out the window as they shared a light-hearted moment on the couch in the living room. Chimney burning with cinnamon floating in the air, filling the room with warmth and spice on a cold, chilly, snowy night.

~Bonus Scenes~

1\. Beach Day

Allura's legs were shaking at the fact that she had agreed to go on another date with Shiro. 'Why wasn't coffee enough?' she asked her frazzled mind as she made sure her son was slathered in a nice coating of sunscreen.

She, herself was trying her best to tolerate the heat as she covered herself up; opting to wearing black shorts that went a little below her knees and a thin pink sweater not having the nerve to show her pink bikini top. There were days when she gained a bit of confidence to show off her body and not care to show the world that she had fading stretch marks on her tummy because hey that's what happens when you have a kid. It wasn't as glamorous as celebrities made it seem, as if she could really lose all that baby weight instantly.

"Mommy, did you invite the boy who eats worms?" Lance asked with a bit of a whiny voice, still trying to figure out his own feelings about a certain classmate.

Allura giggled as she lifted Lance into her arms and planted a big kiss on his little chubby cheek. "Yes, Starshine. We're having a beach day with friends!" she kindly tells him in a way that would be easy for a five-year-old to understand.

Lance slowly nods as he watches a tall muscular man enthusiastically wave his hand their way to catch their attention. He watches as his mom waves back with a small rosy blush forming on her face. He doesn't fully get it but he was just happy to be doing something fun on a hot day.

Shiro walked up to them baring gifts as he lifted a white plastic bag filled with popsicles. "Hope you don't mind, I brought ice cream" he shyly laughs as Keith sticks to his side like glue, already licking away at his own red popsicle.

Allura thanks him as she picks a flavor she knows that her son would like and unwraps it for him. "You may play on the shoreline after you finish your treat" she tells Lance as he bounces at her side agreeing.

"Aw, shoot!" Shiro watched his language as he sadly frowned.

Allura turned around to face him and almost had whiplash from the sight.

"I'm blaming the heat, not my sudden clumsiness" he rolls his eyes in slight annoyance as he quickly wiped away at the blue melted popsicle sliding down his abs.

'Oh gods' she gulps as her blush intensifies.

2\. Red Wine On White Carpet

Allura used up all her confidence within herself to invite Shiro over to her place during a night when Shay offered to take the kids. Ever since her date with Shiro at the Balmera's Brew, he quickly became fast friends with Shay and thanking Allura for being grateful to have made another parent-friend.

Knowing that both boys would be safe and having fun of their own – she allowed her heart to take a leap and see where things would go with him.

A soft knock at the door rattled her frenzied mind as she tried to close her eyes and take a deep breath before bracing herself for a night full of mystery. She knew that nothing would happen, she had boundaries after all. And with her luck, she hoped she wasn't scaring him away with her own insecurities and heavy baggage. Something that she wasn't quite ready to share with him… yet.

'Just hanging out, nothing more' she chanted to herself as she warmly welcomed him into her apartment that she affectionately dubbed the Castle.

Everything was going great until…

"Shit, I'm sorry!" Shiro blurted as he pulled and stretched out his dark gray t-shirt to try and absorb as much as he could of the red wine spilled on the white carpet.

His panic and immediate kick to fix it right away made her feel something. She knew she liked him but sometimes the little things spoke volumes. Something deep within her nagged her, telling her that everything would be alright, that it was okay for her to go with her heart's instinct for once.

Allura gulped as she licked her suddenly dry parted lips as she gently touched his shoulder pausing him from his cleaning as he abruptly looked up with wide eyes.

She wanted to laugh and shake her head, telling him that she wasn't mad but instead she gestured for him to stand up from his hunched over state. Silently listening to her, he stood towering over her as her soft shaky hands cupped his cheeks.

The pads of her thumbs brushed over the bags under his eyes. "You're tired" she stated matter-of-factly.

He sighed, trying to fight a yawn, "it's been a long week… I didn't want to cancel" he honestly told her, which she immensely appreciated.

Shaking her head with a kind smile, she let go of his reddened face. "I would've understood"

"I guess I should've… I'm sorry, Allura. I even went and stained your carpet" he deeply frowned.

Allura shrugged her shoulders with bent elbows, palms raised up, "shit happens"

His eyes widened as he examined her amused features, no longer being able to hide her giggles as she laughed at his expression.

3\. Keith And Lance Sleepover

"Do you like me?" Lance asked, eyes focused on the glowing stars on Keith's ceiling.

"What?" he hears his best friend ask confused.

"My Mommy tells me that she likes your Daddy"

Keith frowns, not knowing how to process this information. Up until that point, it had always been just him and his Daddy. No one else; but slowly he was starting to come around and was willing to allow others in.

Keith moved around until he twisted his body to face the boy sharing his bed, "do _you_ like _me_?" he answered with his own question.

He waited patiently, hearing Lance hum in thought. "Well, yeah! We have lotsa fun together and your Daddy's really, really nice to me and my Mommy! We're almost like brothers!" Lance lightly giggles as his toes wiggle underneath the shared fuzzy red blanket.

Keith nods, feeling the same way but feeling awkward to come off with as much energy as Lance. "Then I guess we're brothers" he declared.

Lance tilted his head to face Keith as he smiled and boldly held his hand, raising it up to the air, "yay!" he cheered for both of them.

A light in the hall flickers on as a gruff, sleep filled voice echoes into the small room.

"You two better be halfway to dream land!" Shiro grumbles.

The boys looked at each other and giggled, "sorry!"

4\. Naked With Only A Towel

'Damn this old ass building' Shiro cursed in his head as he furiously twisted the knobs of his shower. He was exhausted, sweaty, and smelled as if he had been working at a racetrack all day. It was gross and he wanted to make sure he was presentable before his picnic with Allura to Garrison Central Park with her and Lance.

He figured that a nice long steaming shower would do him good as he told Ulaz that he was heading out early after working on five cars all with different problems that day. Ulaz of course didn't let him leave in peace as he wolf-whistled and roughly patted Shiro's back. Shiro smacked him away and flipped him off as he left the auto shop.

Going up what always felt like an endless amount of stairs due to a busted elevator, he opened up his place and dropped his keys on his couch, too tired to notice that he forgot to lock his door.

Having wood flooring was a blessing in disguise as he trotted dirt all the way down his hall and didn't care about anything in that moment but get cleaned up. He'd mop and clean later.

Allura made sure that the boys were okay as she quietly opened Lance's bedroom door open and found them asleep. A small smile appeared on her lips and she took out her phone to take a quick picture. Ever since Lance had turned five, he declared that he was a big boy who no longer needed to have nap time.

Her heart swelled, never ceasing to melt at the sight and cherished every moment of his innocent youthful days. She closed the door behind her and made her way to the front door to put on her purple slip-on's not wanting to go to Shiro's with home slippers.

She still felt a bit embarrassed and shy about visiting or simply going over to his place for anything. His gesture to celebrate her birthday with her alone was the sweetest gift she could have ever received. After internally fighting with herself all day, she decided that as soon as she heard him walk up to their hallway, she would go and ask him what he'd like for her to make for their picnic later at the park.

It was such a beautiful day with a sunny sky with a few clouds scattered across the horizon and a light breeze that made the autumn weather bearable. Despite only reading her text, she knew that he was already home as she braced herself to knock on his door only to have the door creak open.

She entered his place with a soft, "hello?"

Meanwhile Shiro loudly groaned, pounding his fists against the tiled wall. "Just my luck" he mumbled to himself as he gave up on water coming out. Luckily, he no longer had any soap left on his body as he heard what little remained of water drain down. It was rare for this apartment complex to have plumbing issues and sometimes if he felt like it, he'd go and lend a hand to the manager. But not today, today was supposed to be a nice and relaxing day out despite how much the prospect of a nice cool bed and fluffy pillows enticed him to just sleep the rest of the day away.

Wrapping a white towel over his torso, he opened his bathroom door and watched as all the steam came out.

"Shiro, are you in your room?" he heard a sweet voice call to him as he had no time to properly react as he watched his master bedroom's door open.

Allura's hand tightly held onto the doorknob to keep her legs steady as she let a surprised gasp escape her matte-lipstick covered lips. Her eyes were practically ogling and eating him up as she studied each and every drop of water zig-zag its way town his toned body and ultimately getting absorb into the towel – the only piece of material covering the deep 'v' of his pelvis and his nether region.

Her face felt hot, instantly shielding her eyes from the sight. She was still unable to will her body to move and leave him to get dressed in private as she could still partially see him through her fingers that weren't quite censoring the sight.

"I'm so stupid. I'm so sorry, Shiro! I should've waited in the living room!" she squeaked out as she felt a wet hand try and pry her hands away from her face.

"Like what you see?" Shiro teased as he leaned down, resting his cool forehead against her hot one. He managed to hold both her hands down on her sides, not caring if his towel stayed on or not. He knew that they agreed to take their relationship slow but he couldn't help himself in the moment.

He saw an opening and took it.

Allura couldn't avert her gaze as she watched the playful amusement swirl in his tired eyes.

"You're tired" she changed the topic.

"I am but I'll always make time for you and the boys" he kissed her flushed cheek, letting go to find clothes.

Allura gulped, 'oh gods' she thought.

Was it even possible to fall more in love with him?

5\. In A Dream: Finally At Peace

Allura vividly remembers a dream she had not long after everything was laid out in the open. It was a sudden dream she had after telling Shiro about her painful past. It honestly had taken her by surprise, not expecting to still be haunted by Lotor after feeling like a giant boulder was finally lifted off her.

In her dream, she was in the same banquet hall where her life was changed except she wasn't the little girl she used to be. In her dreams, she was the strong, independent young mother of one.

"You don't love me and can't see all the love I hold for you" she recalls Lotor saying in this dream. He looked defeated and coming to terms with everything.

She crossed her arms and bit her tongue back from yelling. She didn't want to fight anymore. Didn't see a reason to strongly react to the past and his mistakes. She admits that there were days where she fully forgave him, even going as far as thanking him for giving her Lance. Then there were other days when she wanted to beat him up and feed him to the rebels all while telling him how much he ruined her life.

She had only been a child then and as much as she hated him on most days – she could never bring herself to tell him that he ruined her life. Lance wasn't at fault here. She loves her son, more than she loved the concept of love, life, the known universe. Everything.

Instead, in her dreams, she was the bigger person. She confidently walked over to him, turning him to make sure he fully faced her as she gripped onto his shoulders. Her nails digging into his flesh as he seemed to not care nor notice the pain.

"I did love you once but not as a lover or life partner. I did love you once, Lotor, I did" she begins to tell him as her fiery eyes made sure he was listening to every word, "I loved you as my dearest friend and no matter how much you desperately wanted my heart – you could never hold a flame to it" she finished as she watched him fade away like a mirage in an oasis.

She watched her entire island vanish in front of her eyes. Tears raining down her face as she was left alone. At the end of her dream, she found herself in an empty bright room.

"Allura, come home!" she heard a voice calling out to her as her blurry vision looked in front of her to find the silhouette of someone familiar. Warmth emanating off of them as she felt her body fly closer to the shadow as if some invisible force was pushing her forwards.

The closer she got, the clearer the person became.

"S-S-Shiro?" she choked on a sob.

"You're home" he tells her in her lucid dreams as he appears in front of her with inviting arms.

Allura awoke before she could reply. That day, she felt like she was having an outer body experience but she felt better than she had in days after being open about her problems with Shiro. She made peace with herself and her feelings, finally able to tell Lotor how she truly felt. Anytime she dreamt of the past, replaying the events that occurred, she never awoke in peace. Constantly being tormented but now that was no longer the case.

Wrapping her hands around her ceramic coffee mug, she enjoyed the warmth and earthy scent of the brew as her eyes drifted towards her living room's window, hearing the pitter-patter of rain coming down from the thundering skies.

She felt her phone vibrate next to her on the couch, alerting her of new emails of orders coming in. Ignoring those, she rose her phone to her chest and typed a new text to Shiro.

 **I'm home.**

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

The End~ Done! :)

We Shallura fans must band together now more than ever after Season 5! Haha.

As I mentioned on the top AN, I have other story ideas in mind, most likely one-shots for the time being. But I don't know when I'll get to those said ideas as I'm still working over the plots in my head but I can say for sure that they'll be solo Shiro/Allura-centric/Shallura/Paladin fam, maybe even a BoM fam fic/more Keith/Krolia dynamic. Who knows! For now, I'm just looking forward to Season 6 in June~

Thank you all for supporting this fic for nearly an entire year! And to those who stuck around until the very end. To those that took a liking to my story telling and writing. I aim to write quality fics, stories that I, myself can read over and over again.

With times changing, I can't help but to feel discouraged sometimes whenever I see that other platforms such as AO3 and Tumblr are the preferred for FanFics… so, from the bottom of my heart – thank you for reviewing/favoriting/following this fic and showing me that you as the readers out there are genuinely interested.

So, even though this fic is now completed – please don't be afraid to continue showing it love! Please do review! Until next time! :D


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